For The Love Of A Spirit
by hakuchihirolover
Summary: After the Cell Game Gohan is hanging around his hom where he meets Chihiro. Later the two friends return to the Spirit World and have their own adventure. Spirited Away crossover.
1. Default Chapter

AN: clears throat:: hem hem:: without any further wait or fuss here it is the one the only, Dragonball Z Spirited Away crossover. Please send in many reviews as this is my fist fanfic and your opinions would be great. However, all flames will be used to burn my many candles. Disclaimer: I own nothing except my computer and my CD player, neither of which I could live without. I am completely broke so any attempts to sue me will be unprofitable and if I did own Dbz or Spirited Away I would not spend my Saturday evenings lying in bed writing fanfiction. Summary: The Cell games are over and Gohan is hanging around the 439 mountain district thinking about Goku. Chihiro and her family are finally back in the real world and have moved into the same district and these two sufferers meet and help each other through their pain. Amazing discoveries lead to Chihiro's return to the spirit world, with Gohan in tow.  
  
For The Love Of A Spirit  
  
Chapter One- Meetings and talking  
Gohan sat by the river bank dabbling his toes into the cold water, thinking of the all too recent death of his father. Despite many assurances that Goku's death was not his fault, Gohan still blamed himself for letting his Saiyan side take control of his emotions when he was fighting, thus stopping him from killing cell while he had the chance. He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he did not notice the approach of another person until they were standing by his side, staring into the water with him. To his surprise Gohan looked up into the face of a complete stranger. It was a girl about his age, with black hair and brown eyes rimmed red from crying like his. Her clothes were rather average and so was she, except for her hair tie, which seemed to be lit from the inside with some kind of magical light. The girl sat down and without talking began to take off her socks and shoes and dabble her toes in the water alongside Gohan's. After a few minutes of sitting in silence like this, the girl reached out her hand to introduce herself; 'My name is Ogino Chihiro, what are you called?' 'I'm Son Gohan' said person muttered. After these social niceties were completed, they lapsed back into companionable silence. They stayed there for over half an hour, simply sitting and not talking before Gohan glanced at his watch and realised it was time for him to go back home and study. Without saying a word, he stood up, waved goodbye to Chihiro and left. They were both back at the same time the next day.  
These silent moments of companionship continued for a week without either saying a word, yet they felt utterly comfortable in the other's presence. Their meetings continued in this manner for a fortnight. The day when the silence ended was the one-month anniversary of the Cell Games and Goku's death. When Chihiro arrived at the glade for her meeting with Gohan she found him curled up in a ball crying softly to himself. Some instinct told her to comfort him and this she did, sliding up next to him and wrapping her arms around him, rocking him gently like a mother rocks a babe. He curled up into her and sobbed into her shirt, his sobs becoming all the more desperate and breathy as they sat there. When Gohan had sobbed his heart dry of tears Chihiro gently asked, 'What's the matter Gohan, you don't have to tell me but I want to help you and it would help me if I knew what the matter was?' 'My. My.. My Dad died a month ago and it's all my fault for being so arrogant and not k..killing Cell when I had the chance and he asked not to be wished back 'cos he thinks it's his fault that people keep attacking earth and my mom's pregnant and I'm scared,' With this whispered admission, Gohan started to sob again. If Chihiro was shocked by what Gohan had said then she showed no sign, she merely continued to rub gentle circles on Gohan's back. 'It is not your fault your dad died Gohan,' Chihiro said in a tone that brooked no argument,' none of us are perfect and we all make mistakes, Kami knows I've made enough of them myself, so don't blame yourself.' 'But he left and he won't come back' Gohan sobbed 'Do you love him?' Chihiro asked 'Yes' Gohan muttered, unsure as to where Chihiro was leading the conversation. 'Well then, if you love him then he will come back because people who love each other enough cannot be kept apart.' Chihiro said. 'But why did he have to leave anyway?' Gohan hiccuped' 'Because he loved you and if you love people you have to leave them sometimes, no matter how much it hurts.' Chihiro said sadly. 'How would you know?' Gohan said, anger overcoming grief for long enough for him to feel patronised. ' Look, this would probably be a lot easier if we knew each other's story,' Chihiro said equably,' so tell me about you and I'll tell you about me.'  
Agreeing to this, Gohan straitened up and began his story, 'My name is, as you know, Son Gohan and my father was Son Goku. This may come as a shock to you but I'm not entirely human, my mother, Son Chichi, is a human, but my father is an alien, one of the last remaining Saiyans in the universe. Saiyans are a warrior race and when my father was born he was sent to this planet so he would wipe out its occupants and the planet would be sellable. However, he hit his head as a baby and forgot his programming and therefore earth survived. When he was older, he helped Bulma Briefs on her quest to find the dragon balls, legendary balls with the power to grant any wish. On this quest he met many friends and enemies and learned how to use ki and even mastered the kamehameha wave. Later on he married my mother and not long after that I was born. An evil alien called Frieza had destroyed the home planet of the Saiyans and all but four Saiyans were dead. The four remaining were Nappa, Raditz, the Prince Vegeta and my dad. The first three were already in the service of the evil Frieza and when Raditz, who was my father's brother, remembered my father's existence he came here to recruit my father to the service of Frieza. When Raditz arrived on earth, my father refused to come with him and in an effort to get my dad to help him, I was kidnapped. My dad and Piccolo-san followed my uncle and there was a brutal battle in which both my dad and my uncle died. However, my uncle managed to discover about the dragon balls and sent this information to Vegeta and Nappa. They set course to earth in order to find these items and use them for personal gain. Piccolo-san kidnapped me and took me off into the wilderness to train me for the Saiyans' arrival. Meanwhile, my dad was being trained in the otherworld by Kaio-sama the lord of the worlds. When the Saiyans were due to arrive on earth my dad was wished back to life and began his journey back to this world. There was a terrible battle in which Piccolo and others died, however, Piccolo is the embodiment of the negative energy in Kami and when he died, Kami died and as Kami was the creator of the dragon balls they disappeared at his death. Prince Vegeta left earth in his space ship and set course for planet Namek where another set of dragon balls could be found. We followed and, to cut an extremely long story short, my dad ended up fighting the powerful tyrant Frieza. Even though my dad was powerful he was still not strong enough to defeat Frieza and things were looking pretty bad until my dad unlocked the mythical state of Super Saiyan. This state made him powerful enough to defeat Frieza. However, we left planet Namek before him and he only just managed to escape in a faulty ship before the planet exploded. Frieza also survived the destruction of planet Namek and was nursed back to health by his father King Cold. They arrived on earth before my dad did and things were looking bad for the earth's special forces until a mysterious stranger arrived and easily killed both Frieza and his father. He then told us that he was going to meet my dad and asked if we wanted to join him we were intruiged, both by this statement and by the fact that it appeared he had gone super saiyan whilst fighting the two ice-jins. We followed him and my dad returned as the stranger had said he would. After the stranger had talked to my father he left and it turned out that he was called Trunks and was from the future. He told my father that in three years the earth's special forces would be wiped out and only I would survive. My dad would die of a heart virus before this event and I would die not long afterwards. The agents of this destruction were two terrible androids created by the diabolical Dr. Gero. The stranger decided that some things in the future were worth changing and gave my dad the antidote to the heart disease that had killed him in his time. Although I did not know at the time, he had also informed my father that he was the son of Vegeta and Bulma. We decided that we did not want to die and began to train hard in preparation for the arrival of these androids. We arrived at the location where the stranger from the future had told us the androids would arrive. We found them and my father fought a vicious battle with one until the heart virus Trunks had told him about struck. When all seemed lost, Vegeta, who had until now been absent from the proceedings, turned up, rescued my dad, killed one of the androids and assisted Piccolo to kill the other. Then Trunks turned up again and informed us that the two androids that we had just disposed of were not the two who were terrorising his world. These two androids woke up, bringing with them a third, who was programmed solely for the purpose of killing my dad. In an act of desperation, Piccolo went to Kami's lookout, where he and Kami were reunified into one powerful being. HOWEVER, this meant that there were no longer any dragon balls on the earth so dad instant transmissioned to planet Namek to bring back Dende and make him the god of the earth. Dende also created us some new dragon balls. It was now that Cell appeared and began absorbing people to increase his power. Training in the hyperbolic time chamber I was able to turn super saiyan and my dad and I became even more powerful. Whilst this was happening, Cell managed to absorb both of the androids, achieving his perfect form. He then challenged the world to a martial arts tournament, Cell Games. The z gang all attended the Cell games and after Hercule had been sent flying out of the ring the real fight began. My dad fought with cell for a while and then said that he couldn't beat him and asked me to fight for him. I was scared and surprised as I did not know my true potential and thought that if my dad couldn't beat Cell I certainly couldn't. However, I fought Cell and eventually I was about to destroy him and I continued to make him suffer instead of finishing him off. He saw that he couldn't win and decided to self-destruct. This would blow up the world and anyone on it anyway. Seeing that we couldn't stop him, my dad used his instant transmission to save the earth. He died. We thought that he had taken Cell with him into the otherworld, but Cell had the ability to regenerate and using dad's instant transmission, he returned to the earth. I fought Cell and eventually defeated him. We then returned to the lookout so as to use the dragon balls to wish back those who had been killed by Cell. When our first wish did not return dad to life we attempted to use the entire second wish to return him to this plane of existence. However, communicating with us, using the telepathic powers of King Kai, dad said that he didn't want to be wished back because it was his fault that everyone got attacked and if he were dead then we would be safe. And he's gone and I miss him so much.' Gohan stuttered to a finish and started to cry again, hating himself for this show of open weakness. Chihiro looked a little but shocked but hid it well, putting aside her own astonishment in order to comfort Gohan. 'Well my story isn't half as interesting as that but I'll tell you it anyway,' Chihiro said soothingly, 'My name is Chihiro Ogino, I was born in Tokyo and lived there until I was eleven. I was spoilt and selfish and my foster parents were fed up with my attitude and decided to move here. When we came here, we took a wrong turn and ended up by this mysterious place in the woods. My foster parents decided to investigate. When we came out the other end, I was still uncomfortable but I started to explore. My foster father said that we were in an abandoned theme park. We crossed a small riverbed and entered the town area. My foster mother and father smelt food and went to find it. They started to eat but I didn't want to seeing no other people around. I started to explore and came to a bridge leading to what looked like a bathhouse. I walked part the way across the bridge and was looking at a train track that ran beneath it when a boy ran out onto the bridge. He was angry and told me that I had to get across the river. I returned to the restaurant where my foster parents were still eating and discovered to my horror that they had been turned into pigs. I ran in delirium towards the river, only to discover that it was too late and the river was too deep for me to cross. Then to my shock I began to become transparent. I was terrified and began to cry. I ran away, not knowing or caring where I went. Then the same boy as had told me to leave turned up and told me that if I didn't eat something from that world I would disappear. I didn't want to eat it as I thought it would turn me into a pig. The stranger informed that it would not turn me into a pig. I eventually agreed to eat what he was giving me. I regained my shape and the boy escorted me back towards the bridge. He told me that I was to hold my breath over the bridge or people would be able to see me. We were almost over the bridge when a small frog creature jumped into our way. I was forced to take a breath, causing me to become visible again. There was uproar and the stranger and I managed to slip away through a side door. The stranger told me to go down the stairs and to ask for a job from the boiler man Kamajie. Somehow this man knew my name but when I asked him how he said he didn't know.  
I eventually slipped down the stairs and came to the boiler room. Kamajie wouldn't give me a job but he persuaded a woman called Lin to take me to see Yubaba. Yubaba didn't want to give me a job, but eventually she agreed. She took my name away and gave me a new, I was now called Sen. The stranger from before, who I had learned was called Haku, escorted me to somewhere I could be assigned a job. Eventually I was assigned to the woman Lin from before. She congratulated me on getting me a job. Haku had been cruel to me on the way down to get me a job and I asked Lin if there were two of him because he had been so nice before. She said that thankfully there weren't and that Haku was Yubaba's henchman and that I was not to trust anything he said. I slept fitfully and early in the morning Haku came and showed me where my parents were being kept with the other pigs. He gave me back my old clothes and in one of these items I found a card with my true name on it.  
Haku told me that my name was the way Yubaba controlled me. If I knew my true name then she had no real power over me. Haku told me that he had spent a long time trying to remember his real name but he still had no idea of what it was. He returned me to the bathhouse and as we were crossing the bridge I saw a mysterious spirit who disappeared when I looked back at him. Later that day, Lin and I were cleaning the bathhouse and I was emptying a bucket of water when I saw this spirit again. I let him into the bathhouse. Lin and I were assigned to clean the big tub. It was filthy and Lin told me that I should go and get a bath token. The foreman would not give me a bath token and then the mysterious spirit gave me one. I went back to the big tub and Lin showed me how to use the bath tokens. While Lin was going to get us some breakfast, the spirit returned again and tried to give me many more bath tokens.  
Whilst this was going on, something that looked like a stink spirit arrived at the bathhouse requesting a bath. Yubaba decided to test me and made me take this unwelcome guest to the big tub. The spirit was so filthy that I had to use one of the extra tokens given me by the strange spirit from earlier. I was too short to reach the handle to turn off the water and I slipped into the bath. When I was leaving the water I saw something that looked like a thorn stuck in the spirit's side. I told Yubaba and almost all the spirits in the bath house helped me to pull it out of the so-called stink spirit. When it was out it turned out that the spirit was in fact a river spirit and this was great good luck. The spirit gave me some medicine, which I kept secret. Yubaba gave out sakes on the house that night.  
The next day the mysterious spirit whom I had let in was in the bathhouse giving out gold. However, whilst everyone was buttering up the mysterious guest I could think of no one but Haku. I was sitting in our quarters when I saw the dragon I had come to recognise as Haku. He was being mobbed by strange bird like creatures. I helped him to escape these creatures. Then he left and went up to Yubaba's apartments at the top of the bathhouse. I eventually managed to get away from the spirits who wanted me to get out of the way as they attempted to get money out of the strange spirit. I eventually managed to come to Yubaba's quarters and after getting away from her gigantic baby I found Haku. He was dying on Yubaba's carpet and the horrendous green heads that Yubaba kept around her rooms were trying to push him down a hole in the floor. Things were looking bad as Yubaba's baby threatened to call his mother if I didn't play with him and the heads were getting even closer to getting rid of Haku. Then someone with a striking resemblance to Yubaba appeared through the floor. She turned Yubaba's son into a mouse, her pet bird into a fly and the three heads into a copy of Yubaba's baby. She then attempted to get me out of her way to Haku but I protected him. Haku and I fell down the hole in the floor into the boiler room.  
Kamajie helped me to heal Haku, using medicine of his own and some of the medicine the river spirit had given me. He turned back into his usual humanoid form. The Yubaba look a like had told me that she was Yubaba's sister, Zeniba, and that Haku had stolen her magic seal and that she had put a spell on it saying that anyone who stole it would die. Haku coughed up the seal and a black slug, which I squashed. I decided to go to Zeniba and apologise for Haku. Kamajie gave me train tickets and then Lin appeared, telling me that the mysterious no face was eating people and demanding to see me. I managed to slip him the rest of my medicine and escape. He followed me and accompanied me on my journey to swamp bottom where Zeniba lived. I apologised to Zeniba and she accepted my apology. Then she the mouse, the fly and no face created my hair scrunchy. When they had finished Haku arrived and took me back to the bathhouse. On the way back to the bathhouse I remembered that Haku was in fact the spirit of the Kohaku River where I had once almost died and mysteriously survived. We returned to the bathhouse where I passed Yubaba's test and my foster parents and me were allowed to return, as humans, to this world. Haku was no longer under Yubaba's power as the black slug I had squashed had been her way of controlling. Haku accompanied me to the edge of the spirit world where he told me that we would meet again. I love him and I know that will see him again I just have to.' Chihiro finished, choking back breathy sobs.  
  
Gohan looked at Chihiro and the sorrow in her face, trying to determine if she was lying. He saw only truth and loss in her eyes and breathed. 'I believe you.' Chihiro dried her eyes and turned to Gohan and whispered, 'I believe you too.' Gohan hid his surprise and stood up, he stretched out a hand and said, 'Do you want to come for supper?' Chihiro looked at his outstretched hand and lifted her own to place it in his, 'I'd love to Gohan.'  
  
Tbc AN: sorry that was so long and probably boring but I had to do it to get some of the base of their friendship. Will get much better after this but I had to do this. Please R&R or I will send Yubaba after you so go press that little button on the left or Vegeta will blast you. 


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Here I am again with chapter two, this is more like the beginning of the actual story' cos the first chapter was a sort of prologue and this is set like five years after. Legal Mumbo Jumbo: I don't own either Spirited away or Dragonball z don't sue me I'm broke  
  
Of Changes New And Old  
  
It has been five years since Chihiro and Gohan met and formed their friendship. There have been many changes since then and now I must begin to categorise them. The most major change is the fact that after Chihiro's foster parents were discovered to be abusing her, Chihiro was adopted by Chichi and is now Chihiro Son. She has made close relationships with all the Z gang, most surprisingly with Vegeta, and the ones she is closest to call her Sen as a token of affection. Goten was born while both Gohan and Chihiro was eleven and is now a hyperactive chibi. Gohan has continued to train in order to remember his father's heritage. All of the z gang knows of Chihiro's history and her time in the spirit world. Despite her new friendships and relationships, Chihiro still misses Haku and often dreams of seeing him again. I leave you now as the gang celebrates Bulma's birthday with a party and get together at Capsule Corporation.  
  
Chihiro sat on the stool in front of her vanity, unhappily surveying her reflection in the sheet of mirrored glass. Although she had grown into a startlingly beautiful young woman, Chihiro still saw herself as the gangly eleven year old she used to be and no amount of compliments from the gang could persuade her that she was anything but. Giving her sleek black hair one last despairing brush, she pulled back into her favourite coiled style, fixing it with the elegant jewelled clip that Bulma had given her for her birthday a few years back. A few rebellious strands fell in front of her eyes but Chihiro neglected to push them back into place, she merely sat contemplating the beautiful silver statuette on her bed side table. The statue was perfect in it's detail, each scale etched in care and love and the most striking thing of all was the pair of perfectly matched emeralds that were fixed into the eye sockets. This statuette was one of Chihiro's most prised possessions and, surprisingly, had been a gift to her from Vegeta on her twelfth birthday. Chihiro could have sat like for eternity, gazing at the miniature dragon in silent stillness. However, the door to her room swung open to reveal the tall form of her handsome adopted brother. Gohan, like she, had matured into a strikingly handsome young man and in her eyes had never looked more so than he did then. He was wearing black jeans that clung to his form without being overly tight, his torso was adorned with a black silk shirt, open at the collar to reveal a glimpse of a tanned, muscled torso and his obsidian eyes twinkled with their customary humour. She had only seen this gaze gone when he was thinking about his dead father or when he was angry. Gohan got angry very infrequently and one of the few times she had seen him get mad enough to go Super outside of sparring was when he found out that Chihiro's former foster parents had been abusing her. Chihiro was drawn from this reverie as Gohan crossed the room in his powerful strides and crouched down to cup her face and look into her eyes. He gently pushed the hair out of her eyes and blotted the tears that had formed there at the thought of Haku. He spoke to her gently, almost in a whisper, 'Hey sis, don't cry, it's gonna be all right. You'll see, you love him too much for it not to be all right. No tears today, not on Bulma's birthday. Here's a deal for ya', smile for Bulma's party and you can beat the shit out of me later, kay?' The last bit was said teasingly, hoping to win a smile. Gohan was in luck; a small smile crossed Chihiro's face, making her appearance all the more striking. She sniffed and dried her eyes, offering her brother another small smile, 'Like I could, I may have trained with Vegeta, but you're way too powerful for small human fry like me to fight with. I might turn you over to Vegeta's mercy though. I'll have to ponder my options carefully.' Chihiro said in a voice of mock consideration. 'Harsh blow my lady,' Gohan said with a mocking bow. 'Now I must escort you to the ball under pain of frying pan.' Both winced at the thought of Chichi's frying pan of death and destruction( and Chihiro got to her feet and picked up the elegantly wrapped parcel from her bed and turned to Gohan. 'Hey, where's the squirt?' She asked, referring to their mischievous younger demon of a brother. 'Last I saw he was under the attack of IT for attempting to steal some of the trifle when he thought 'kaasan wasn't looking.' He winced in sympathy for the beleaguered demi-Saiyan. 'Well then, kind sir, we must rescue our poor sibling from the terrible attacks of the weapon of doom. Lead me to the field of the battle at once.' Chihiro quipped. Gohan eyes twinkled with great amusement as he lead his sister out of her room and towards the main room to rescue their younger brother. As it turned out, Goten was in no need of any form of rescue as he had used the Son Puppy Dog Eyes( and was now sucking on a lollipop he had somehow managed to come by. The two teenagers had entered the room to be laden down with all the parcels, bowls, tubs and other items that were necessary for a party, especially a party where there were four people with Saiyan blood present. After they had attained a striking resemblance to two overloaded donkeys, the teenagers were then assigned a person to carry. Gohan made the mistake then of asking why they didn't just capsulise their baggage, thus making flight easier. 'I'll tell you why mister,' Chichi screeched at him, 'Because this food took a long time to prepare and if it was capsulised then some of it would be ruined.' She turned her icy glare to both teenagers then, 'And if any of this food is any way damaged then neither of you will be training for a month and Gohan will eat the same amount as you do Chihiro, is that quite understood?' They both nodded quickly, these threats being somewhat the equivalent of slow and painful torture as far as they were concerned. Somehow they managed to juggle their many pieces of luggage and the person they had been asked to carry and set off for Capsule corps. The journey was fairly uneventful punctuated only by the brief comment from either the teenagers or Chichi and Goten. 'Have you done your homework young man?' (Chichi) 'Hey, looky, I can see a cloud that looks like mummy's frying pan.' (Goten) 'Goten you're standing on my nose and your feet really stink.' (Chihiro) 'I AM THE GREAT SAIYAMAN' (LOL, just kidding)  
  
***  
  
At long last the party arrived at capsule corps, where Chichi ordered her two pack animals, erm teenagers, to deposit the food she had brought in the kitchen. She then went off to gossip with Bulma at what was happening on the latest soap the two had discovered. Trunks and Goten went off into a corner to discuss their next pranks, involving somehow eating all the food before the boring grown-ups got to it and made them share. Gohan went off to talk with Piccolo about whatever it is you talk about with people who kidnapped you, beat the shit out of you and called it training. Chihiro stood looking a little lost for a moment before she saw Vegeta and went over to talk to him. After a short while, a bell rang somewhere in the labyrinthine chambers of capsule corps, signally a mad rush to the table by the four Saiyans and a more dignified approach by the others. Dinner was a quiet affair, or would have been if it weren't for the gulping and chewing emanating from the Saiyans. Most of the gang ended up eating nothing because of their nausea. The only ones who were capable of eating anything were Bulma, Chichi, Chihiro, who all lived with Saiyans, and Android eighteen, who seemed unperturbed by the eating habits of Saiyans. After every crumb had vanished, mostly into the gaping maws that the saiyans call stomachs, the present giving ceremony began. They all sat in a circle around Bulma, or rather, they all sat in a circle around Bulma, except for Vegeta and Piccolo, who stood out of the circle with their arms crossed. Then they each took it in turn to give Bulma the present they had made or bought her. Yamcha gave her tickets to his next game and a photo he had from way back before Raditz arrived or Gohan was born, a picture taken not long after the Tenkaichi Budokai when Goku defeated Ma Junior, more commonly referred to as Piccolo, in the photo Goku, Yamcha and Bulma were laughing together and this gift brought tears to Bulma's eyes. Master Roshi gave her a very skimpy bikini, which was received amongst general laughter. Tien, Launch and Chaotzu had all got together to buy Bulma a beautiful painting which she had been admiring for ages. Krillen and Eighteen had bought her an exquisite vase, which seemed to change colour in different lights. Dende, who had left Mr. Popo in charge at the lookout so that he could come to the party, gave her a glass ball that seemed to contain the entire universe in it. Piccolo had shown surprising taste in an elegant pair of earrings. Even Vegeta had bought her something, the father of her child had deigned to purchase her an exquisite evening dress and handed her a smaller package which Bulma had privately opened, giggled at quietly and then put in her pocket, mouthing, later, at Vegeta. Bunny Briefs gave her daughter some clothes that Bulma had thanked her for and then placed far to one side and her father gave her something that looked terribly scientific yet gained many thanks from an ecstatic Bulma. Chichi had given her a titanium frying pan and some novels, the titles of which evoked fearful groans from the watching Saiyans. Goten and Trunks had pooled their allowances to purchase a book entitled, 'An Idiots Guide To Cooking' and then run fast in the other direction. Gohan gave Bulma something else that confused all those who weren't Bulma, Gohan and Dr. Briefs. Finally Chihiro gave Bulma her present. It was a perfect bust of Bulma, carved out of sandstone by Chihiro in secret. The level of skill and love in this gift was obvious in the very face of the carving, which had been so carefully crafted. Gasps ran around the circle as Bulma removed this gift from the delicate tissue that surrounded it. There seemed to be life in the beautiful model, that somehow Chihiro had captured the essence of life that made Bulma. If you looked closely it seemed that there was Bulma's laughing twinkle in the carved eyes. Bulma released herself from the haze of delirious appreciation long enough to turn to Chihiro and ask her, 'Sen, how did you make this, it's beautiful? I've never seen anything quite like this before.' Chihiro blushed modestly and answered in her customary alto, 'To tell the truth, I don't quite know, I've always been able to make things like this, I have others that I've made at home, but this one was particularly successful and I thought you would like it.' 'What do you mean you don't know?' Piccolo questioned searchingly, searching Chihiro's face for any signs of deception. 'I mean that it's like I almost go into a trance and when I come out of the trance I look down and I've made one. I've tried to do it when I'm not in the trance and I'm getting better but I do my best work in this trance.' She said quietly. Everyone stared at her like she was a rare flower in a botanical garden. Then Vegeta turned to her and asked in a voice that they had never heard him use before, 'Could you go into this trance state now?' Chihiro looked at him with a strange expression on her face for a few moments and then nodded, 'Sure, Why not?'  
  
***  
  
As Chihiro prepared to enter the Trance State, the rest of the gang gathered in an awed silence. Sen was sitting cross-legged, her back to the house and her eyes closed. Nothing happened for a long moment and Yamcha was starting to get impatient when Chihiro's hand shot out suddenly. It reached for the pile of rocks that Chihiro had earlier placed at her feet. For a brief pause all was still before the hand began to sort through the rocks, choosing a medium sized piece of alabaster. Chihiro's eyes were still closed and the rest of her body was absolutely still. Chihiro's other arm suddenly shot out to pick a tool out of a selection that Bulma had brought from her workshop on request. Skilful hands worked quickly over the lump of rock, chipping, shaping and smoothing at a speed almost too fast to follow. After five minutes Chihiro's eyelids snapped open, revealing only the whites of her eyes. In the split second that followed, Vegeta shot out like an arrow from a bow and caught Chihiro just as she fell into a dead faint in his arms. As she lolled back into the safety of Vegeta's strong arms, Chihiro's hands unfolded, revealing a perfectly carve alabaster statuette. Gohan's arm shot out like a flash to catch the rolling object. He stared at it for along moment before passing it silently to Chichi, who in turn passed it around the circle. Eventually the model came to Bulma. She studied it in wonder. The model was beautiful and entirely unique. It was two faces, somehow moulded back to back into one magnificent bust. One of the faces was known to all those in the circle, it was a perfect likeness of Gohan, down to the very last scar. The other face was known to none of them, though Gohan had a very good guess as to the identity of the mysterious man. His hair was long and very strait and there was a look of great sorrow in the eyes, eyes that seemed to be looking at something nobody else could see. 'Who is it?' Bulma whispered. 'I'm not positive', Gohan murmured 'but I think that it's Haku.' That name was familiar to Bulma and she commented,  
'Haku, isn't he the spirit who Chihiro fell in love with in the spirit world all that time ago?' 'Yes, that's the one' Gohan agreed. Suddenly Chihiro stirred and they all fell silent. She sat up and looked around her, as if waking from a long night's sleep. 'What did I make?' She questioned Gohan as soon as she had regained her geographical placing. Wordlessly he handed her the figurine and she stared at it for a long time before tucking it away in a pocket of her jeans. 'Well then,' She commented in a voice of forced cheer, 'Isn't it supposed to be someone's birthday today or what?' And without another word she led the way back to CC to continue the party. It was obvious that Gohan and the others wanted to talk more about the model she had made but it was also very clear that Chihiro had no intention of raising the subject.  
  
***********************  
  
After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, the party got into full swing again, with several groups breaking off from the main party to talk about their area of particular interest. Chihiro and Vegeta were talking about something in a quiet tone that brooked no eavesdropping, Chichi and Bulma had got together to plan Gohan's wedding, the bride had yet to be decided but all the other factors had been planned to the last detail. Master Roshi, Krillen, Yamcha and Dende were playing poker and, though he denied reading his oppositions minds, Dende was winning every round, scooping in vast amounts of money. Tien and Chaotzu had gone off somewhere, saying something about training ( AN: all perverted readers and author break down into mad fits of laughter whilst all you normal people out there gaze down condescendingly.). Launch was sunbathing and occasionally shooting ki blasts at master Roshi when she catches him ogling her. Mrs Briefs was in the kitchen, baking. Trunks and Goten were off somewhere causing mayhem, following their usual fashion. Dr Briefs had gone off to his laboratory to finish doing something and Eighteen and Gohan were sparring.  
After Gohan had thoroughly trounced the android again he turned wistfully towards where Chihiro and Vegeta were talking. It was a shame that Chihiro was his sister and he therefore would get shitted later if he interrupted her conversation, because he really needed a good spar and Vegeta was the only one around with a power level even remotely near his. Without turning around, Chihiro knew that Gohan was watching her and Vegeta talk and that he wanted to spar with Vegeta. She smirked evilly, promoting a proud smile from Vegeta and then rounded on his Royal Highness.  
'You know what, Veggie-chan, I reckon that Gohan could easily beat you in a spar nowadays.' This comment brought an angry exclamation from Vegeta that couldn't be written down because it is too utterly untranslatable. However, I will give you the signed version  
'@*"^%!£~#& 8&*68675$%&7.' The infuriated prince then turned on the confused Son and said in his most terrifying voice, 'Brat, you will spar with me now.' Then flew off. Gohan looked uncertainly at his sister who just smiled sweetly back. Gohan sighed the sigh of the long suffering and turned to her mother and Bulma, 'Now that we've got rid of them shall we bring out the brandy and cigars so that we can make our evil plots properly?' Laughter rang throughout the gardens at this so typically Chihiro request.  
  
******************************  
  
Unaware of the evil plots that the females of their acquaintance were hatching at this very minute, Gohan and Vegeta were flying fast towards the destination Vegeta had decided upon for their 'friendly' spar. When they finally arrived, Gohan looked around him, surveying the terrain closely, and then turned towards Vegeta and said sarcastically,  
'Very funny, Veggie-chan, I've always wanted to beat the shit out of you at the first place where I met you. You have an excellent memory for one quite so vertically challenged. Guess you couldn't miss a pilgrimage to the place where you had the shit beaten out of you, it's such a shame that Planet Namek got blown up, we could've made a trip back to the first place where my dad went super saiyan before you.' By the end of Gohan's little speech his little friend was frothing at the mouth and Gohan decided going Super would be a good move right about now. The fight soon began in earnest.  
  
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The three scheming females sat around a table that had been cleared of empty dishes and began plan 'Get Gohan A Girlfriend' or plan GGG. They each had notes on the necessary features of a suitable partner, Gohan's positive and negative attributes and plans of attack, erm fixing up a date. They had each decided to specialise in one subject and had detailed notes, which they now dictated to the other two, at the great amusement of the others. Chichi began with the requirements of the mother of her grandchildren, 'She must be: rich attractive, but less attractive than me an excellent cook able to dominate Gohan initiated into the mysteries of the frying pan fertile active intelligent popular and able to fight.' Bulma turned to Chihiro and whispered under her breath, 'I'm not surprised we haven't found anyone yet with those requirements.' Chihiro desperately struggled to keep a straight face as she recited Gohan's pros and cons, 'Cons: naïve trusting wears quite baggy clothes that hide his attributes half-alien doesn't know his own strength Pros: attractive generous clever strong loving well connected funny artistic diplomatic and devoted'  
By the end of this recitation Chihiro was blushing an unusual shade of fuchsia and denying that she had any feelings of that kind for Gohan, who was, as she was quick to point out, her foster brother. Bulma was about to begin her ideas for plans of attack when, quite suddenly; Chihiro collapsed on the floor and started to scream. Her body convulsed, moved by invisible waves of energy that gave her sporadic movements and eerie sense of structure. The whites of her eyes were showing and her screams were the screams of a person who was in true and unendurable pain  
  
(Shall I leave you there?)  
  
(What do you think?)  
  
(Okay put away the nuclear missiles I'm not going to stop now)  
  
Gohan and Vegeta heard Chihiro's screams from the place where they were sparring and their sudden stop meant that the momentum of the punches that they had been about to throw at each other carried them forward to land with their noses pressed into the dirt. After escaping from this embarrassing scenario, they turned as one and flew at Super Speed towards capsule corps and the screams they heard.  
When they had arrived at the capsule corps compound Chihiro had stopped screaming and was lying eerily quiet on the hard ground. She was so still that if it weren't for the gentle fluctuations of her heart she could have been dead. The whole area was silent, even Goten and Trunks had quietened down when they found out that 'Big Sister Sen' was screaming and Goten was sniffling into Chichi's skirts. The others eyes were not dry either and 'unfortunate allergies' had acted up as soon as Vegeta had arrived at CC and it seemed that there were small drops of moisture in his eyes.  
Suddenly there was a flash of light and a pop and Baba Uranai appeared, looking as sour as ever. As she knew the future, being a 'fortune teller', the whole group turned towards the aggravating woman. Vegeta spoke first, his usual gruff voice also affected by his, erm, allergies.  
'What's happening to her woman, tell me know or I'll blast you to the otherworld?' (Vegeta's originality has also been affected by these terrible allergies).  
The old crone cackled and said simply,  
'The girl is gaining her true form.' As if it were the most obvious thing in the universe to be happening, because honestly how many days go by without one of your close friends going into a fit and gaining her 'true form'.  
Vegeta growled low in his smirk and sent a stare at the old woman that had been known to make Yamcha piss himself, not that that was hard or anything.  
'What do you mean by that ridiculous statement, you crone?' he snarled.  
'What I mean is,' said Baba in a tone you might use when talking to a very young retarded child, 'That Chihiro has finally come to the age when she shall have fulfilled the prophecy and can gain her rightful body and it's powers.'  
This time it was Bulma who pounced on the fortune-teller with another question.  
'What do you mean, the prophecy?' She questioned. The old hag smirked and said in an all too satisfied voice,  
'Well I thought you would have known. But... if you don't then I will recite it.  
  
Born in mystery Child of night Cast into the human realm. Healer Lover With parents but born of another. Live in this realm she will Until the time comes for her to return Unknowing, in human guise She will return to her home. Her people will not know her. Love she will find there Still in her mortal raiment she will fly. Dragonback, salvation she will bring. Love will find her but she will be separated For fate has more in store for her than this.  
  
Lonely, Sad and abused To the mortal plane she will return. To find a child Alone as she And bring comfort to the mourners. Five years will pass. Five years of peace. 'Till strange talents shall be unveiled. Then to her real form she will be given And return to the plane of her existence she will. Spirit of the moon.  
  
This is the prophecy to which I was referring. It is about Chihiro, of course.'  
Gohan scraped his mouth off of the ground to say sarcastically,  
'OF Course, it is so obvious that that refers to Sen.' Unfortunately for our young spirit, Chichi heard this comment and proceeded to bring the frying pan of doom and destruction( out of the pocket where she had capsulised it and whacked him soundly over the head with it. She had opened her mouth and was about to yell at Gohan to remind herself that she was still alive and still had the power of terror over the greatest warriors on the planet and possibly in the universe. Just then, they heard a low moan from behind them and turned around just in time to see Chihiro's eyes flicker open.  
  
Oooooooooooooooooooh a cliff-hanger  
  
Shall I leave you there perchance?  
  
If you ask nicely you can have some more  
  
Look, holding nuclear weapons to my head is not asking nicely  
  
Fine I'll write some more anyway  
  
Goddammed terrorists  
  
Humph  
  
Chihiro sat up slowly, looking around at the astounded company. Her throat was dry and the sun hurt her eyes. This was all she knew about what had happened to her. The others were staring at her in astonishment, she did not know why, all she wanted was to go somewhere dark and have a tall drink, and maybe eat a roasted newt. The others knew why, they were staring at her pure white skin and the shimmering black hair that had grown to fall in braids down to her waist. She stood and walked into capsule corps, heading for the kitchen to get a very cold drink.  
After Chihiro had drunk about half of the water in Capsule corps, she sat down in one of the many sitting rooms, after drawing the blinds and turning off as many of the lights as possible. She then turned to her gob smacked friends and said in a voice that was like the sound of bells,  
'Why are you all staring at me like that?' Wordlessly, Gohan passed his adoptive sister a mirror that rested on one of the side tables and Chihiro inspected her reflection in it. She then turned to Trunks and Goten and said in a voice that made Vegeta proud some where in his heart,  
'Which of you two brats planned this ridiculous trick?'  
The two Chibis shook their heads violently, fearing the wrath that seemed to be leaking from Chihiro as she spoke. It was odd how her voice could sound dangerous even after this transformation to such unnatural beauty. Then, quite unexpectedly for Chihiro, Baba spoke up,  
  
'The young ones did nothing, my dear, you have achieved your true form as a spirit of the moon. It is time for you to return home.'  
  
AN: Ooh looky, cliffhanger exremey. Please send in many reveiws. Thanks to Sophie for your encouragement. It was much appreciated. Next chapter will hopefully be up by the end of the weekend but I have loads of schoolwork at the mo'. Four thousand words, I feel so proud. 


	3. Chapter 3

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AN: Chapter three is up, I feel so proud, and this is more than I have ever written before. I'd like to thank all those little people out there who helped to make me feel big. lol. Oh, and Smophie-chan, if you're reading this, I have a question for you, do you reckon that lesbian gerbils use their tails? We were discussing this topic in art today and we decided that it depended on the discretion of the gerbils involved (lol) what do you think? My thanks go out to all of my two reviewers so far, I feel so unloved :: sob:: because I luv you guys for giving me reviews anyone who sends in a review will get a personal dedication and comment at the beginning of each chapter.

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Anee: many thanks for the great review, I'm glad you liked that line. Am gladder that you liked it enough to send me a review, really made my day as I had just done ten tonnes of math prep and it stopped me from strangling someone. This is not a good thing to feel as my anger management therapist says that killing people for giving you extra prep 'cos you were mucking around in class is a bad thing. But honestly, how many people can pay attention to a lecture on changing the subject of the formula. As for the thing about the moon being destroyed, this is a crossover and therefore I have a license to mess around a bit. I was going to make Sen a river spirit like Haku, but I wanted her to be different. If you haven't watched Spirited Away, I recommend you do so, or read the first chapter again, 'cos otherwise this is going to get veeeeery confusing.

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Smophie-chan: Hi there, mon chum whose user name is very long and complicated and impossible to remember, please send in more reviews or I will hold Memnoch the devil hostage, the fact that you could retaliate by holding appleseed hostage is irrelevant. I hope what I have written so far is more interesting than the first chapter so your input is essential for my continued existence. Life is pretty crap at the mo' loads of prep and I've had to quit my paper round so that I can continue to go to LAMDA. Teachers are evil and everyone else wouldn't know the difference between anime and pokemon if Vegeta danced naked in front of them with a ribbon tied round his, er, private body parts. ::Wipes drool off of computer, bed sheets, cd player, random cds lying on bed, t-shirt, maths homework, carpet and just about anything with in a certain radius:: (lol) I've had a brill idea for something for our website, will call you soon or sooner. Luv ya hun. Merrick aka Sayuri aka Lucy aka crazy book one (k I have many aliases need to compound them how about Merurcy one lol)

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The necessary legal mumbo jumbo: I don't own dragon ball z or spirited away, I'm just building sandcastles for free in other peoples' sandpits. Sue me and I will feed you to Goku you will get no money as I have spent my allowance on manga again. Why do they not have any decent shops in Cambridge?

:: I have PMS and ESP, I'm a bitch who knows everything::

Here is the third chapter

Just coming up

Keep going down

And down

Flames will be used to toast my bread every morning so send

As

Many

As 

You 

Want

(lol I've been waiting for a chance to do that for ever)

Here is the beginning of the real chapter three

Chapter three: After all these years and miles we meet again

(warning : sentimental mush approaching)

Silence fell like a shroud over the small lounge in capsule corps. Some had fallen silent out of respect for the momentous news that Chihiro had just received but most were still coaxing their shocked minds into processing the information that they had only just heard stated so blankly, even Goten and Trunks were silent, something that Chihiro had inadvertadly caused them to be twice in the same afternoon, an amazing feat in anyone's books. Then Chihiro broke the silence that she had involuntarily created by saying in a shaky voice,

'That can't be right it just can't be because if I were a spirit then I wouldn't have smelt and earth's moon was blown up years ago so that can't e right it just is wrong.'

'Why dear? Why can't you be a spirit who was hidden in human form in the human world because of a prophecy?' Baba asked in a gentle voice,' you're not from this world, so whether it has a moon or not has no effect on you.'

Seeming to accept this argument, Chihiro asked with barely constrained excitement,

'Does this mean I can go back, back to the spirit world, back to Haku?' her voice cracked on the last word

'I'm afraid you must, and you must return soon for otherwise you will disappear unless you eat spirit food. Are you sad to have to leave?' The old woman asked soothingly. Chihiro seemed to contemplate this question before answering the fortune-teller in an almost puzzled voice,

'I'm not sad to be returning there but I don't want to leave my new family and friends. I love Haku more than I thought I could ever love someone, but I love you guys as well, if in a different manner. Gohan is the best brother I could ever have asked for and you have all been so very could to me, so much more than I deserve. You have given me the childhood I never had and an understanding and love of life that means so much more than I could possibly say if I had a million years to tell you in. Part of me wishes I could just stay here and live with you guys for whatever mortality I have left, but another part of me says that I can't just pretend that I am not what I am and that I have to embrace who I am and return to my home and Haku. I know that I will miss you guys terribly but I am a spirit so I have to return to my world. Please don't be too sad that I have left for I will find a way of visiting you and maybe talk Yubaba into letting you visit me occasionally. I will always be with you guys in my heart and I hope you feel the same way about me.' 

With this speech over, Chihiro stood up and went to each person in turn and hugged them around the waist, when she came to Vegeta she hesitated for a moment before shrugging to say, so what if they think what they want to think, and threw her arms around him. When she came to Chichi, she hugged her foster mother so hard that it seemed that se would never let go. She eventually did and then lifted up a teary eyed Goten and hugging him even harder than she had hugged Chichi. She put him back down and turned to her brother and through her arms around his neck and started to sob into his shoulders. Gohan lovingly raised her chin so that he was looking straight into her cerulean eyes. He said in a harsh whisper,

'I'm coming with you when you go back, not for ever but long enough so that I can see your world and make sure your happy, I probably am being terribly selfish but I just can't let you go yet. I wish I could come and live in your world but I have a world here that I can't abandon either. I just want to tell you that I love you and I always will, no matter how many miles and years lie between us. So, when do we leave?'

Chihiro stood shocked for a few minutes until she finally shook herself from her delirium to reply in an almost inaudible voice 

'Tomorrow, we'll leave tomorrow.' 

She then turned to the others and said in a shaky voice

'I have to go back but can we treat this last day like any other day. Part of me wishes that I didn't have to go, but I know I have to and that I can't live here. I just want things to be as normal as possible. Who knows, maybe when I get to the spirit world, Yubaba may let me come and visit you guys occasionally? Whatever happens, I will always love you guys.'

With this speech said the party attempted to continue but, despite Chihiro's pleadings, there was a slightly muted feel to the company and the party soon ended of it's own accord. They all arranged to meet again the next day to say goodbye to Chihiro and disappeared off to their residences. The Son family was the last to leave and there was an uncomfortable silence for a moment before Vegeta took everyone by surprise and hugged Chihiro, hard. None of them but Chihiro heard what he whispered in her ear except for Chihiro,

'I'm proud of you brat and I'll miss you.'

**********************************

The next day came none too quickly for Goten as the atmosphere in the 439 mountain district had been overlaid with sadness and the young child didn't really understand why his beautiful older sister had to leave like daddy left. He remembered asking Sen if she was leaving because she didn't love him, this episode had provoked many tears from both parties.

FLASHBACK

***Goten's pov***

The party was over and everyone was back home. Strange stuff happened at the party and all I know is that Sen is leaving me. Why does everyone leave me? Daddy left me and now Sen is leaving. Is it 'cos I'm bad, I've tried very hard to be good, except for that thing with the hair die and the thing when me an' Trunks swapped around the sugar an' the salt and the time where we ate all the ice-cream when we weren't supposed to and the thing with the water balloons…

I approached big sis' when she had gone into her room. She was brushing her hair and I made a face, the last time 'kaasan had tried to brush my hair the brush broke and I got hit with IT, the one and only frying pan of terrorÔ . I don't know why girls always insist on brushing their hair but Sen likes to do it and what she likes must be good at some point. I walked into her room and though I thought I was being all quiet like Trunks taught me she turned around and got off of the stool where she was sitting and asked me,

'Hey squirt, you wanna talk?'

I nodded quietly and then asked,

'Why are you leaving, is it cos' you don't love me? Did I do something wrong?'

Then, to my utter surprise she wrapped her arms around me and squeezed me tight. When she spoke her voice was slightly muffled and I realised she was crying.

'You haven't done anything wrong Goten and I love you to pieces, why would you think that I don't love you?'

I thought it was obvious and told her so, grown-up people can be so dumb sometimes,

' Cos' you're leaving and daddy left an' that means that you an' daddy don't love me cos' if you loved me you'd have decided to stay and if daddy loved me he would have stayed as well.'

This seemed to upset her more and when she replied her voice was choked with tears,

'I have to leave Goten, if I stay here I'll get very sick and die like your daddy did and you won't be able to wish me back as I'm not a human or even an alien and I don't really belong in your world. Your daddy loves you too and he only left cos' he wanted to make sure you would never have to be in times of danger and be forced to watch your friends die before they had to. And, like I told your bro' a long time ago, you'll see him again cos' he loves you and if you love people you won't have to spend all your life away from them.'

I considered this, it had to be true cos' big sis' knew everything and could not be wrong cos' if she was wrong then everything would just come to and end. I then answered,

'Can't I come with you?'

'Not where I'm going squirt,' She answered 'Not even Gohan can stay with me when he comes to stay for a bit and we all know just how strong big brothers are.'

'Can't I just come to stay for a bit as well?' I asked hopefully

Her answer surprised me. I had thought that this tactic would work as everyone was always telling me that I should be more like Gohan and if he was going then I would be able to go to be like him. Instead of the acceptance that I had expected, she looked at me for a moment before answering,

'No squirt, not where I'm going. You don't always have to be like Gohan cos', believe it or not, he's not perfect and you'll gain more by not striving to be perfect. I'll tell you something Piccolo told me once, when your brother was younger than you were he was a cry-baby and a coward. He changed a lot and he is himself and you were born with the right to be yourself. Don't anyone let you tell you anything else 'kay.'

I was surprised, 'kaasan was always telling me to be more like Gohan, more dedicated to my studies, more serious, more responsible, more brave, more just everything…

END OF FLASHBACK

***End of Goten's pov***

After this the evening had been rather quiet and even though Gohan and Chichi and Chihiro had all tried to continue as normal there was still an undeniable essence of sadness and contemplation. Supper had been as wonderful as usual but no-one enjoyed it quite as much as they normally would have done. The three children still trained after supper but none of their hearts were quite in it that night. They retired early and none of them slept, and when they did finally succumb to the need to rest then they slept uneasily and most had bad dreams. 

They woke early the next morning and the air was fresh with anticipation. Chihiro had put all the tings she wanted to take with her into capsules and had these in a pocket of the jeans that she was wearing. The few things that she had left behind she had given to either Gohan or Chichi. Breakfast was eaten quickly, as it always is when there are Saiyans at the dinner table, and the family was ready to meet the rest of the gang and their friends at capsule corps.

Goten was thrilled when he was told that he would be allowed to use the Nimbus cloud that day as he usually got carried by one of his siblings, which, although fun, made him feel very immature. Gohan volunteered to carry Chichi and Chihiro was allowed to carry nothing on this flight.

Because Goten was flying the Nimbus cloud, they flew slower than usual and didn't reach capsule corps 'till a few minutes before the rest of the gang turned up. They were all there, even master Roshi who didn't know Chihiro that well as Chichi wouldn't let her foster daughter near that old pervert unless it was unavoidable. When the whole gang was present they all crammed themselves into Bulma's largest capsule car and flew of towards the village where the wood was where the entrance to the spirit world was.

As they were walking through the village, Bulma got mobbed by fans, Vegeta attempted to blow up a few people for looking at his mate in a way he didn't approve of, Bulma yelled at him for trying to rule her life and the chibis caused their customary mayhem. Finally they managed to find the path through the woods to the entrance to the spirit world. When they reached it, the group came to a halt and it was obvious to them all that this was really the end and that they had to say good bye now. Chihiro turned to the people who had become her family and close friends in the five years that she had known them. 

'I woke this morning and wished I could stay here but now I'm here I know I can't stay, that my world is through this tunnel. As I've said before, I love you guys to bits and I always will. I hope you don't forget about me. Don't be too sad that I've gone cos' I always will be with you in spirit. I also have selfish reasons for returning to my world, which most of you will be aware of, and if anything happens between me and Haku then I will make sure you guys find out as soon as I can persuade Yubaba, using my newly learned Vegeta persuasion techniques, that I can come visit you guys. Vegeta, thanks for all the friendship and support that you've given me and I hope I wasn't too awful a sparring partner. Bulma, you've been like a second mother to me and I wish you all the happiness in the world. You've all told and given me so much and I will never forget you. Mum, you've been the mother I never knew and I love you so much. Goten, remember that you are always your own person and that you done have to spend your life fighting to be like someone else.'

While his sister was saying her goodbyes, Gohan was hugging his friends and family and promising his mother that he would study when he could. When the two had finished their preparations, they turned away from their friends and family and walked resolutely down the tunnel towards the spirit world. As they walked away, Bulma turned to Chichi and said,

'I haven't felt sadder to lose something since Goku died.'

The others agreed vocally and even Piccolo grunted his agreement. What surprised them most was Vegeta's action of putting his arm around his mate's shoulders and hugging her close to him, letting her cry into the material of his armour. Chihiro's departure seemed to have opened some restrictive emotional floodgate and soon everyone who had anyone to hug was hugging him or her, all except Trunks. 

Trunks had never felt very confident about his family dynamic and had always had almost no emotional connection to the man who had fathered him; he could never bring himself to call him father. For emotional comfort he had always gone to his mother and had often wondered how it was possible that he existed at all. His mother was so loving and HE was always so harsh and cruel, never thinking of anyone but himself. Sometimes he thought that HE might have made his mother bare him so that HE had an heir. It seemed like the kind of thing that HE would have done. Only rarely did HE come out of his precious gravity chamber for anything but food and on those rare occasions HE ignored the woman who he had mated. So seeing his parents like this was a bit of a shock for the young demi-saiyan who thought his father incapable of all the weak human emotions he had so often dismissed as foolishness. Vegeta seemed to sense his son's discomfort and turned towards his heir. There was a moment of uncomfortable silence as father and son looked each other in the eye. Then, to everyone's astonishment, Vegeta unwound one of his arms from around Bulma's waist and held out his hand for his son. After another moment's silence, Trunks extended his hand to take it. 

If one had decided to look into that clearing at that moment one would have had a great shock. One would have seen a world famous baseball player, a famous martial artist or three, an emperor, a woman who some might have recognised as the daughter of the Ox-King and the wife of Son Goku, a young boy who looked the spitting image of a young Son Goku, a beautiful blonde woman and Bulma Briefs with her arms wrapped around a short man with gravity defying hair and a young boy with purple hair. The last three were in what could only be described as a family hug. 

(The temptation to finish here is very strong)

(Shall I?)

(Shall I continue?)

(The choice is up to you)

(::runs off and hides in nuclear shelter::)

(:: cackles insanely and glomps Vegeta doll::)

(Vegeta: get off me baka human female)

(Me: fine spoilsport)

(Readers; hold nuclear missiles and politicians threateningly)

(Me: fine, fine I'll write some more but you could have asked nicely)

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(**AN: **from now on each bit will start with something telling you where the scene is set and whose point of view it is from)

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THE ENTRANCE TO THE SPIRIT WORLD, THE SPIRIT WORLD AND THE BATHHOUSE.

THIRD PERSON

Gohan followed his foster sister through the tunnel into a room, which looked remarkably like a train station waiting room. He looked around him, wondering if there was some sort of secret entrance hidden in here, which needed to be opened to access the spirit world. He cast a glance at his sister and opened his mouth to ask her if they had to do anything special to get into the world she and told him so much about. One look at her face persuaded him not to ask, her eyes had a strange look in them, like she wasn't really in her body at all but remembering something long ago or even that her soul had left her body and she was somewhere else. He knew that he would just have to trust her and follow her.

Quite suddenly, she blinked and it seemed as though a light had been switched on behind her eyes. Her head turned towards him and she beckoned him to follow. Gohan didn't ask anything, something about this place seemed to suggest power and great sorrow. He followed his sister through the arched waiting room out of the door into a sunlit green expanse of land, exactly like he had always imagined it to be from her descriptions.

Chihiro laughed suddenly, a wonderful, rippling laugh that seemed like the full sound of a bell resonating around the open land. She danced on the spot, not caring who saw or what they thought. She turned and ran up the slope that she remembered so well. When she reached the top she looked around, everything was exactly how she had left it, the statues were exactly where they had been and everything had that timeless air of the spirit world to it. She laughed again and called down to Gohan, who had remained at the bottom of the slope,

'Come on up Gohan, it's exactly like I remembered it. It feels so alive, not muted like your world. It's wonderful.'

She laughed once more and span in circles on the grass turf. Gohan ran quickly up the slope to join her and she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him on both cheeks. She ran off again, teasing him to follow. This game continued for a time, with her running off and letting him catch up with her and him running to meet her and then her running off again. Gohan seemed also to be infused with the life of the place and as she ran closer to the dried up streambed, he flew after her. She was not expecting him to remember about ki and was not ready for his arrival. He tackled her to the ground and started tickling her. She squirmed and laughed uncontrollably and he continued in his merciless torture. She begged him to let her up and he smirked in a manner very reminiscent to Vegeta and said

'Say uncle.'

'Never,' she declared and used her newly discovered magic to push him off of her. She stood up and dusted herself off and then walked towards the streambed. As she neared the bed of the stream, she became more serious and stood there, waiting for the comforting support of Gohan by her side.

'What is it, little sis'?' He asked gently

'It's just that I really want to go back, but what if no-one here remembers me or cares about me.' She sniffed

'No-one could ever forget you.' He said in the soothing voice that only people in entirely in platonic love could have for each other. 'And if they have, then they're fools and don't deserve you. Anyway, you can always take Vegeta's method and beat the crap out of them if they annoy you.'

Chihiro smiled and, taking Gohan's hand stepped into the riverbed. 

They crossed the river a lot quicker than it had taken Chihiro and the Ogino family all those years ago and soon were in the main street of the town. Chihiro had to drag Gohan away from one of the restaurants, finally threatening him with no food ever again if he even thought about eating from there. They climbed the final slope and reached the bridge leading to the grandiose, and extremely tacky, bathhouse. 

Some of Chihiro's earlier gaiety returned and she ran laughing across the bridge. Gohan finished sulking about being denied food when he remembered about the Ogino's transformation into pigs and he ran across the bridge after his sister. Chihiro opened the almost invisible side door she had told Gohan about and crawled through, motioning for Gohan to follow her. He crawled through after her and stood in the small side garden. He turned to ask Chihiro where they were going now and saw her opening a small side door, which he had missed. She smiled at is questioning glance between her and the doors which she fondly remembered Haku going through and said in her lilting alto,

'Well, that way would be quicker, or we could fly up to Yubaba's quarters, but I thought we might as well take the scenic route.'

And with that she ducked through the gate way and beckoned for her stupefied brother to follow her, after all, there was only so much that can be expected from males, particularly those with any amount of saiyan blood running through their veins. Gohan followed and found himself looking down a very steep flight of steps to where his sister stood at the bottom,

__

'How do I get down?' He asked her through a sibling bond that had mysteriously developed over the years, though Gohan now suspected that Chihiro had unknowingly used her spirit powers to create it. 

(**AN: **_Italics _will be used to show conversation through the sibling bond)

'_Well you can do what I did the first time and try to carefully descend the stairs and trip on the second stair and slide the whole way down and run into the wall at the bottom, or you can do what I did this time and fly down.'_

Gohan laughed mentally and quickly flew to join his sister at the entrance to the boiler room. She turned the wheel to open the door and mentally prompted him to only speak through the bond so as not to wake anyone. The door slid open smoothly and the two slipped inside and quietly closed the door after them.

They slipped through the anteroom and into the main boiler room. Kamajie was sleeping in his usual position and Gohan started at the sight of him. Chihiro laughed mentally and asked him teasingly,

'_You wouldn't have thought that you were trained by a Namek and were a half alien from your look on your face when you saw our dear Kamajie. Is ickle Gohan-chan fwightened of the big bad nasty spiwit?'_

'Shut up you' he quipped back at her and started to walk across the room. 

When they reached the other side of the room Chihiro and Gohan knelt and took off their shoes. Suddenly, a few score of the dust balls that Chihiro had told Gohan about rushed out and quickly surrounded Chihiro. After this first reunion, the shoes disappeared into the tunnels where the dust balls lived. The two went through yet another secret door and went towards the elevator. They managed to make it all the way to the top floor without disturbing anyone and Chihiro grabbed a dumpling for Gohan so that he wouldn't turn invisible while they were talking to Yubaba or something equally embarrassing.

When they finally reached the doors to Yubaba's rooms Chihiro turned to Gohan and said to him,

'Call me Sen while we are with lots of people but otherwise you are to call me Chihiro. And don't let Yubaba disturb you, she likes seeing people frightened of her.'

With that warning given, Chihiro walked resolutely towards the overstated doors to Yubaba's quarters. Instead of negotiating with the doorknob, she used her ki to open the doors in front of them in much the same manner as Yubaba had done to her at her first visit here. 

The two siblings walked down the grandiose halls towards where Chihiro remembered Yubaba's private rooms. When they arrived in the same grand office that Chihiro remembered from all those years ago, Yubaba was sitting at her desk, counting out some of the gold on her desk. Gohan stared at the strange woman for a moment, disbelief etched on his countenance, and then remembered Chihiro's warning and looked away. Yubaba was exactly like Chihiro had remembered her, except for the fact that her eyeshadow was now red and her dress purple.

Yubaba started when the two entered her room and hurried to hide the gems she had been counting. She then looked at her guests, sizing them up and deciding whether or not they were rich. They both looked in their mid teens and had a strange air of power about them. The boy wore and orange and blue training gi and had gravity defying hair, he was not a spirit but he didn't seem entirely human either. The girl was a spirit and a very powerful one at that. There was something oddly familiar about her; she was tall with long black hair. Her eyes were a piercing shade of blue and her skin was pale. The girl was dressed in a close fitting black top and a calf length black skirt. Suddenly Yubaba remembered why this girl looked so familiar and flew out of her chair towards her.

'**Sen', **She yelled at the top of her voice. 'Why are you a spirit, girl?'

Gohan was slightly shocked by this extraordinary woman's lack of courtesy and was about to comment on this over the mental bond when he noticed that Chihiro seemed actually to be pleased by this woman's discourtesy and was smiling at her happily whilst accepting her proffered embrace. She smiled at Gohan over the shoulder of the woman who was now wrapped around her waist and made thumbs up sign at him. She then detached Yubaba from her person and answered her question.

'I am a moon spirit who was hidden in the human world because of a prophecy saying that I had to save people from a destiny of eternal sadness. I gained my true form yesterday and have returned to my world.'

'A moon spirit?' Yubaba gasped questioningly, 'who is this with you? What is he?'

'Yes, I am a moon spirit and this is my foster brother, Son Gohan, he is half alien and a martial artist. I would ask you that he is allowed to remain with me for a while. He is no trouble when he is not eating.' Chihiro answered laughingly

'Oh, make fun of my saiyan appetite will you, you will suffer the consequences most painfully.' Gohan quipped and turned, with a Vegeta-esque look on his face, to begin teasing his sister when Yubaba interrupted their verbal sparring with a question to Chihiro,

'Someone whom you might remember has been moping around since you left and we should tell him you have returned.'

'Oh! Who is this person?' Chihiro asked in a tone of mock ignorance.

Yubaba realised what Sen was doing and smirked as the answered,

'He's called Haku, do you remember anyone of that name?'

'I do recall someone of that name,' Chihiro said and then dropped the joke to talk to Yubaba in what could only be described as a confidential tone, 'I have a little plan as to how we could break the news to Haku.' Something about the tone that his sister used reminded Gohan of Vegeta and he wondered exactly what the two would do to Haku. Even as he wondered, the two conspirators planned their devious plan to torture Haku.

**************************************************

****

Argh I'm tired and this thing is long, I'm going to listen to loud music and make out with Vegeta

Tbc


	4. Chapter 4

****

AN: CHAPTER FOUR HERE. I FEEL SO PROUD CO I HAVE NEVER WRITTEN THIS MUCH ON THE SAME STORY WITHOUT GETTING VERY BORED. I HAVE BEEN SUFFERING FROM WRITERSBLOCKITIS BUT I HAVE GOT OVER IT AND NOW JUST HAVE A NASTY FLU AND COUGH. I SAW SPIRITED AWAY FOR THE THIRD TIME YESTERDAY AND HAVE DECIDED THAT IT IS A GODLY MOVIE THAT SHOULD BE WORSHIPED. I HAVE THEREFORE DECIDED TO UPDATE AND UPLOAD THE MUCH DESIRED LEMON. SCHOOL SUCKS, LIFE IS THE SAME AS EVER EXCEPT I AM NOW A NAVAL CADET.

WARNING: THIS CHAPTER WILL CONTAIN STRONG LEMON. IF YOU ARE UNDER EIGHTEEN OR A PURITAN DO NOT READ. IT WOULD BE OFFENSIVE TO THE LATTER CATEGORY AND IF YOU ARE UNDER EIGHTEEN YOU SHOULD NOT BE READING AN R RATED STORY ANYWAY (LOL).

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN DBZ OR SPIRITED AWAY. ANYONE WHO SUES ME WILL GET THE EMPTY SMIRNOFF BOTTLE ON MY DESK AND MY CRAPPY DRAGONBALL Z DRAWINGS. WHY DO I EVEN BOTHER TRYING TO DRAW?

THIS CHAPTER IS DEDICATED TO MY BEST FRIEND AND MUSE SMOPHIE-

CHAN, THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU HAVE DONE FOR ME. I WOULD BE DEAD IF IT WEREN'T FOR YOU. YOU HAVE INSPIRED ME TO STAY ALIVE. YOU GAVE ME HOPE WHEN I NEEDED IT MOST AND YOU MEAN EVERYTHING TO ME. NEVER LOSE THE FAITH, YOU ARE THE MOST AMAZING PERSON I COULD EVER HAVE HAD THE PRIVILEDGE TO MEET. MY ONLY REGRET IS THAT IT TOOK ME TEN YEARS TO FIND YOU. YOU UNDERESTIMATE YOURSELF, NEVER THINK YOU AREN'T GOOD ENOUGH. PEOPLE WHO SAY THINGS ABOUT YOU ARE NARROW MINDED, PREJUDICED FOOLS WHO DON'T DESERVE ALL THE THINGS THAT THEY HAVE. YOU ARE THE BEST ARTIST I HAVE EVER MET AND EVEN HANNAH SAYS THAT YOUR SKILL IS INCOMPARABLE. DON'T LET GO BECAUSE I DON'T HAVE THE STRENGTH TO EXIST WITHOUT YOU. YOU ARE THE BEST FRIEND THAT I COULD EVER HAVE HAD AND I HOPE THAT YOU FEEL THE SAME WAY ABOUT ME. ALWAYS KNOW THAT I WILL BE HERE TO LISTEN AND THAT IF YOU NEED TO TALK YOU CAN CALL ME AT ANY TIME IN THE DAY OR NIGHT. HOWEVER, YOU WILL NEED MY KNEW MOBILE NUMBER. PLEASE UPLOAD YOUR STORIES SO THAT I CAN READ THEM. DO NOT DOUBT YOUR TALENT.

CHAPTER 4 - REUNION AT LAST

If you had descended a few stories in the bathhouse from the office where Yubaba and Chihiro could be found plotting, you would have seen a most interesting thing. Well, interesting to those with any historical memory. Those people with historical memories would remember Master Haku, Yubaba's henchman, who never showed any emotion. That was until the significant arrival of Sen. This strange human girl had somehow thawed Haku's hard heart. If you had these memories then you would also remember the less than friendly relationship that had always existed between Haku and Lin. It is to be noted that Sen and Lin became friends during Sen's sojourn in the spirit world. Despite the fact that Haku had noticeably changed since Sen's departure, it was even rumoured that he had quit his apprenticeship with Yubaba, and the fact that Sen's departure had brought her friends closer together, it was still an unusual sight to see a very stressed looking Haku pacing up and down, occasionally turning to an amused Lin and asking a question. For the interest that this scene inspires, I think that I shall take a closer look.

Haku paced three steps to the door, five steps to the window. He could still see a small blood stain on the wall from where he had been five years ago. Three steps to the door, five to the window. He desperately tried to ignore an amused Lin standing by the wall. Three steps to the door, five to the window. Giving up he turned to the amused spirit and asked,

"What if I go back and she has forgotten about me?"

"She won't have."

"What if she never loved me anyway?"

"She stuck her arm down the mouth of a dragon to heal you, she broke Zeniba's curse."

"What if she's with another guy?"

"You're powerful, beat him into a bloody pulp."

"What if we fight all the time?"

"Invest in earplugs."

"What if she doesn't want to marry me?"

"Go off on a ridiculous quest to be a hero and win her heart."

"What if we marry and our kids are monsters?"

"Two words, boarding school."

"What if-?"

"Haku, shut up, go and pack and go tell Yubaba that you're leaving. Stop hyperventilating."

Lin was very amused by Haku's nerves but she didn't understand why he was so nervous, it was as Kamajie had said all those years ago, she simply couldn't understand love. Haku had finally stopped pacing, Lin had been sure he was going to wear a hole in the floor, and was trying to calm himself down enough to go and see Yubaba about leaving the Spirit World to go and propose to Sen, which was what the whole fuss had been about anyway. Suddenly, the door opened and in walked one of Yubaba's lesser messengers, the messenger turned to Haku and said,

"Mistress Yubaba wants to see you in her office immediately, Master Haku."

Haku would have previously responded to this summons immediately, but since Sen's sojourn, he had stopped responding to Yubaba's summons. He didn't even respond to these, as he had decided that he would go to see her on his terms not hers. 

"Isn't that a shame."

"But Mistress Yubaba says that it was urgent."

"Tell her to think about that next time she wants to put a black slug in my digestive system."

"She says that it is about Sen."

(Haku, Messenger, Haku, Messenger)

At that comment, Haku stopped, looked up and without saying a word, jumped out of the window, transformed into his dragon form and flew up to Yubaba's office. Lin and the messenger looked at each other before simultaneously saying,

"MEN"

************************************************************************

As Haku flew up the side of the bathhouse, hundreds of possible and impossible scenarios flew through his head at an astonishing speed. What if Sen had died, what if she had been kidnapped…

He flew into Yubaba's office and transformed, ignoring everyone, looking straight at her.

"What is it? Where is she? What's happened to her?"

It was then that Haku noticed the two other people in Yubaba's office. The man was not a spirit, but he wasn't fully human, either, he was a martial artist, which was obvious from his defined muscles and the training gi he wore. The woman was a spirit and he discovered from discretely scanning her that she was a moon spirit. This shocked him as moon spirits were the most powerful of spirits, even more so than Yubaba and Zeniba. She was tall, with the lean slender form of a dancer or a gymnast. Her hair was long and shimmering ebony, it fell straight to her slender waist. She was wearing a black skirt and form fitting black top, her skin was pale and her eyes were a very familiar shade of blue. He didn't trust himself to speak and when he did, his voice shook with poorly concealed emotion.

"Chihiro?"

Chihiro smiled softly, all previous schemes forgotten as soon as she looked into his eyes again. 

"Hi."

Haku was shocked, he couldn't believe his eyes, and it seemed impossible that Chihiro should have come back to him and as a powerful spirit. The two stood for a moment, merely gazing in disbelief at each other, and then Chihiro ran across the room and wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her head in his chest. Her form shook against him and it took a moment for Haku to realise that she was sobbing. He lifted her chin from against his chest and dried her tears,

"Please don't be sad."

Chihiro smiled up at him through her tears,

"I'm not sad, I'm just so happy to see you again."

And with that comment, she buried her head in his chest and started to cry again. Haku decided that however lovely it was to see Chihiro again, women were completely indecipherable. 

After a few moments, Chihiro dried her joyous tears and lifted her head from where it rested against Haku's broad chest. She twisted her neck so that she could see Yubaba without having to leave Haku's encircling arms.

"So we're agreed about the arrangements?"

Yubaba smiled, a terrifying sight even for one who had been her apprentice for years.

"Yes, we're agreed, now get out of my sight, all of you."

Gohan, Haku and Chihiro, still wrapped in Haku's arms, all walked out of Yubaba's rooms, into the grandiose entrance. Gohan turned Chihiro and said,

"I'll leave you two to catch up, Sen, do you have anything in that wonderful collection of yours that I could use to go train in?"

Chihiro smiled,

"Sure, Gohan-chan, Bulma-san gave me my own capsulated GR, you can use it if you want to."

"Bulma-san gave you a GR? Vegeta-san is gonna be pissed, he always wanted another one."

"No he wont, the one I've got was going to be his, but he gave it to me."

"Vegeta gave you something that he could have used to train in?"

"The word Gohan is friendship."

"I know, it's just that Bulma and Vegeta are married and he never stops training for her. Unless, there's something you're not telling me."

"You have a sick mind Gohan, Vegeta is married, anyway we are just friends."

"Whatever you say."

"Here's your GR, now leave me alone."

"Chihiro and Haku sitting in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N…"

"Get out, you baka."

"Going."

With that comment, Gohan caught the capsule Chihiro threw at him and sauntered out, still humming the annoying song. Chihiro sighed and turned back to Haku, who was staring after Gohan with a strange look on his face. 

"Who is he?" he snapped.

"Oh. That's Gohan, he's my brother."

"You didn't have a brother last time you came here."

"Gohan and his mom adopted me not long after I left here the first time."

"Why?"

"Because the Oginos were my foster parents and they were abusing me so Gohan found out and he told his mom and they adopted me."

"What about this Vegeta person?"

"Oh, Vegeta's Gohan's dad's arch-friend."

"Who is Gohan's dad?"

"Son Goku, he's dead. Why are we talking about this here? Do you have anywhere where we could go talk in private?" 

"Yeah, I still have my old rooms from when I was Yubaba's apprentice."

"Okay, lead on good sir."

"As you wish, my lady."

As he led Chihiro towards his rooms, Haku wondered why he felt so nervous. They were just going somewhere where they could talk without being interrupted; it wasn't like anything was going to happen, was it.

When she entered Haku's rooms, Chihiro looked around in appreciation. The rooms were simple and elegant, nothing like the pretentiousness of the rest of the bathhouse.

"I take it you did your own decorating?" she asked softly.

"Yeah, I couldn't stand how it was before." He answered self-consciously.

"It's lovely." Haku was shocked to find himself blush pink at these soft words. He blushed even more when he heard her next comment,

"It suits you." 

"Thank you."

Haku seated himself cross-legged on the floor and gestured for Chihiro to do the same. When she was sitting he began,

"So tell me…"

"What's happened while…"

They both blushed when they realised that they had begun to speak at the same time and Haku gestured that Chihiro was to ask questions first.

"Are you still her apprentice?"

"No I quit, but I spend some time here and some with Zeniba."

"How is everyone?"

"They're fine, they all missed you though."

"Even Yubaba?"

"Even Yubaba."

"What about all the money I lost her with the whole letting no-face into the bathhouse thing?"

"Yeah, she was angry at you for two days or so, then loads of really rich spirits started turning up. Apparently, that river spirit who you helped was really rich and had loads of rich friends and when he told them about you, they all started to come here too. So you made her rich. Otherwise, you're trouble on legs."

"Ah, sweet, I love her too." 

"Um… do you want the others to be here when you tell me what's happened to you over the last few years?"

"No thanks, I'd rather just tell you at the moment."

"Okay"

"So, shoot."

"How did you meet Gohan?"

"I was moping around and he was moping around and we lived near each other, there are only so many places to mope."

"Why were you moping around?"

"'Cos I missed you"

"Why was he?"

"His dad had just died and he thought that it was his fault."

"That's tough, how long have you been living with his family?"

"Five years, they adopted me not long after we met."

"What is he?"

"He's only half human. His father was part of one of the alien race known as Saiyans, he was sent to earth as a baby to destroy it, but hit his head and forgot. Gohan's mum is a human and when they got married Gohan was born only half-human."

"Who's Vegeta?"

"He's the prince of the saiyans and the only full-blooded saiyan left alive."

"What happened to the rest of the saiyans?"

"This evil alien called Frieza blew up their home planet and everyone but Vegeta, Nappa, Raditz and Kakarott died. Kakarott is Goku's saiyan name. Raditz and Nappa died not long after Goku first found out the truth about his heritage and Goku died saving the earth from an evil android called Cell. There are three half human hybrids, Gohan, his younger brother Goten and Vegeta's son, Trunks."

"What's the deal between you and Vegeta?"

"He found me when I was trying to kill myself."

"WHAT?"

"I was really depressed 'cos I wasn't here with you and I just wanted to die and I tried to kill myself. Vegeta found me and stopped me and helped me. He had lost his world when Frieza destroyed it and had vowed to kill the monster that had destroyed his planet and then Goku did. He was prince and Goku was just some lowborn peasant. He fought all his life to achieve the legendary state of Super Saiyan, yet Goku didn't even know he was a saiyans and became a super saiyan before him. He spent the next few years training to become better than Goku, it was his driving force in life, and when Goku did turn up he trained more, yet Goku still surpassed him. Then Goku died and Vegeta had still never beaten him, his skills were still untested against his rival's and a warrior of lesser class and his half blood brat had saved his life. On Vegeta-sei, he would have lost his status and on earth he had nothing left for him in life. He probably would have fallen into depression like I did if it weren't for Bulma and Trunks. No matter how much he pretends otherwise, Vegeta really loves Bulma a lot and Trunks is his son and heir and he loves him as well. Vegeta is my friend and I owe him a life debt."

"Life debt?"

"It's a kind of bond, there are several different types of saiyan bonding. The most well known one is the mating bond. A mating bond is a sign of a true mating and therefore makes infidelity impossible, true mates share a mental connection and can access any part of the other's mind at any time that they want. 

Then there is the sibling bond, which is a bond that forms between two siblings, the stronger the bond, the more access to the other's mind you have, Gohan and I have a strong bond and therefore have a mental form of communication through our bond. 

The next form of bond is a Vekhan bond. This is a bond between to saiyan fighters who consider themselves worthy opponents. I suspect that Goku and Vegeta have a Vekhan bond and that's why it was so difficult for Vegeta when he died. Being away from someone you have a bond with can drive you insane unless you have a stronger bond where you are.

The last form of bonding is a Life debt bond. In a life debt, it means that at one point, one member of the bond has stopped the other from taking a life, generally their own. These bonds are the most rare and difficult to define. This is because these bonds don't form when someone stops you from killing in self-defence"

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HERE THERE BE GRAPHIC LEMON. IF THIS OFFENDS YOU, SKIP DOWN TO WHERE IT SAYS 'HERE ENDS THE LEMON'. IF YOU ARE A PERVERT THEN ENJOY AND HAVE A GOOD WANK.

Haku sat in shock, trying to absorb all the information that he had just been given. He sat for a few moments, trying to decipher the hidden implications of what he had just been told. He unconsciously lent forward as he thought about what this news meant for the future. He found himself saying,

"Do you have any other bonds apart from your ones with Gohan and Vegeta?"

"I have one developing bond that needs to be affirmed, but I have no other full bonds."

After this comment, Chihiro leant into him, unconsciously pressing her lithe form against his. Haku didn't know how it happened, one minute he was staring down into her eyes, the next her lips were pressed against his, sending little electric shocks of pleasure down to his groin. He felt her small pointed tongue gently exploring the contours of his mouth and slightly parted his lips, allowing her questing tongue to further explore his mouth. As she pressed her small form against him, she brushed against his groin, sending all thoughts of control or restraint far from his mind as the mind blowing pleasure coursed through him.

He barely had enough control to pick her up and carry her through to his bed, but he knew that he wanted this first time to be special for both of them. As he carried her, he felt her hands leave his neck, one running its fingers through his hair, the other beginning its quest down his back to his waist. Stoically resisting the urge to take things fast, he laid her out on his bed, her hair forming black pools on the cushions. Feeling self-conscious, he lay down beside her and held her close in his arms.

They lay like that for a long time, merely holding each other, breathing the other's essential smell. Then, one of Chihiro's hands snaked down from around his neck to play with the buckle of his belt, slowly fiddling the clasp open and pulling the belt off. Instinct guided Haku to bring one arm down to her waist and place his hand, palm down, on her stomach, under her top. As he felt his pants slide down his legs, he slowly brought his hand up, sliding her top over her head, revealing her perfect body, her alabaster breasts framed in the black lace of her bra. She had changed so much since they had first met; she had a woman's body now.

He felt her hands reach up from around his waist underneath his shirt and as he felt her gently removing his top, he followed this example by trailing his fingers down to the hem of her skirt, gently swirling patterns on her perfect pale skin, delighting in every shiver of delight that these actions provoked from her. She thrust her hips towards him, begging for him to touch her in that most private of places. He removed her skirt torturously slowly; sliding the smooth material over her hips and letting it pool on the floor.

They lay there, naked but for the most small garments, his boxers, her black thong and her bra were all the barrier that remained between them now. Delighting in the emotions that were most primitive, they lay there, not kissing, only touching. Haku felt Chihiro slides his black boxers down his legs to join the rest of their clothes on the floor. Unintentionally, he flinched back, memories of the pain that had been inflicted on him when he had first been Yubaba's apprentice and made many more mistakes than he had done before he quit came back to him in a rush. He stiffened against her, whimpering slightly at the onslaught of painful memory. 

Chihiro felt Haku stiffen against her as she removed his last piece of clothing and thought that she could make a good guess as to why. Mentally cursing Yubaba to the last regions of hell for the suffering that Haku had been through, she paused, gently stroking his hair, comforting him against the memories that were all too obviously flowing through his mind. She knew that touching him now would only make him feel the pain that he was remembering now and knew that she wanted him to know only the pleasure.

"Haku, may I comfort you?"

Haku nodded, still afraid of the pain he half expected to follow, but trusting Chihiro not to intentionally hurt him. Chihiro knelt on the bed beside him and then knelt at his feet, looking up at him, love shining evident in her eyes. He relaxed slightly, reassured by the love in her eyes that she would not try to hurt him. With a gasp, he felt her kiss his feet, working slowly up his legs, her kisses leaving a burning trail behind them on his pale exposed skin. By the time that she reached his knees, Haku was all too aware of the torture that waiting for that before dreaded contact could be.

To his great disappointment, Chihiro completely avoided Haku's groin, instead her lips travelled up his torso, pausing only to swirl her tongue in the warmth of his belly button for a moment. These new sensations were a completely different type of torture and much more deadly than pain could ever be. When Chihiro reached his chest, she surveyed Haku for a moment, before lowering her head again, letting her long curtain of velvety black hair sweep seductively over his face. Haku muffled moan in this curtain as Chihiro first sucked and then gently nibbled on his pert nipples.

As Haku discovered this new pleasure, Chihiro found the moans and groans of gratification that he was producing seductive and tormenting. A carnal part of her wanted to make him scream for her, to make him submit to her and worship her. She knew that Haku had never had any sexual pleasure before and thought it unlikely that he had actually experienced any type of pleasure before. She knew that he might be now beyond any point of reason, but she wanted this first time to be something that they both wanted. She knew that she wanted to give herself to Haku and had done for some time, but she also knew that she wanted it to be perfect for both of them. 

"Haku, do you want me to continue, we can't go back after this and I don't want to do this is you aren't ready yet?"

"I love you, Sen. I want this."

Having heard her name gasped as a prayer on Haku's lips, accompanied by the words that she had dreamt of hearing for so long, Chihiro bent over and softly placed a loving kiss on his warm lips, loving the tender caress of his hand down the side of her face and through her long hair. She shivered as she felt his other hand gently stroke up and down her body and eventually come to rest on her slim hips. She arched her back as he brought his hands round to her flat stomach and let them rest there for a moment, tickling the sensitive skin with his long elegant fingers. 

Chihiro's eyes rolled back in pleasure as one of Haku's talented fingers slid below the elastic of her thong to repeat this pattern on the soft downy hair that grew there. Haku brought his other hand down from where it stroked the side of her face and placed it on her other hip. Gently he insinuated his second hand beneath the elastic and painstakingly slowly brought the thong down over her slender waist.

Moaning in pleasure, Chihiro assisted Haku by wriggling her lithe form to slip the garment dividing the two off. Slowly, she lifted one hand and brought it behind her back to fiddle with the clasp of her bra, eventually undoing it and shifted her body yet again to remove this last restriction. 

She lay there naked, her alabaster form perfect and beautiful in the fading light. Her hair was surrounded by her aureole of jet hair and soft downy tufts of the same hair curled delicately from her exposed form. Her small but elegant breasts were pale except for the alert nipples standing clear on her striking white skin. Her high cheeks were flushed pink with pleasure and her breathing was fast and anticipatory. 

Haku almost choked at the sight of her, he had forgotten how beautiful she was and what the sight of her did to him. Seeing her like this was a gift that he would treasure for the rest of long life, he decided that even if it ended here, it would be worth it to have seen her like this. He would gladly have died now so that the last thing that he ever saw was her, looking up at him. He almost drew away, content with the wondrous sight that he beheld. Then Chihiro smiled and looked up at him, curving her back seductively and pressed her soft malleable lips against his. Electric shocks waved up and down his body, every inch of him alert and tingling with pleasure. He moaned softly when she gently removed her lips and lowered her head, seemingly demure, with her hair falling in a long wave over her face.

It seemed that she was being overcome by a fit of uncontrollable modesty, that suddenly she was shy and afraid. Chihiro seemed to be curling into herself bending her head lower and lower. Haku almost screamed with pleasure when her lips reached their destination, gently sliding over his hard member. He arched his back, the pleasure uncontrollable his mind almost not his own. She peppered light kisses along him, some so soft that they felt like phantoms of real kisses. This teasing torture continued for a few more minutes, the pleasure becoming all the more excruciating by the second, and then Haku swallowed a scream as he felt Chihiro's warm mouth engulf his aching member. He arched his back, sweat dripping down his head from the build up of pleasure and pressure behind his eyes. His body seemed to be on the brink of even more pleasure and each twist of Chihiro's talented tongue brought him nearer to the edge of this abyss. As she brought him nearer and nearer to the edge, Haku became all the more certain that Chihiro would stop, would not let him degrade her by shooting his seed down her throat. Yet, she only took more and more of him into her mouth, eventually relaxing all of her throat muscles so that she could taste all of him at once. Haku didn't want to hurt her and he knew that if he trust into her warm mouth too hard that she might choke, but the dragon in him was becoming all the more prominent as Chihiro brought him closer and closer to completion.

He brought one hand down and slowly rubbed his fingers between her legs, at first merely discovering the shape of her and then, more slowly, caressing her, causing her to arch her body, pressing her mouth even hared against his member. The increased pressure and Chihiro's soft moans against his member finally proved too much for Haku to take. He groaned and fisted his spare hand into her long hair, while his other hand caressed her folds in rapid sweeping strokes. Then he released, shooting his seed into her willing mouth as they arched and writhed in the pleasure of this animal act. As he came in her mouth, Haku felt Chihiro become all the more moist and pliant under his questing fingers. He pulled her up to him, so that her tousled hair rubbed against his chest.

He slowly brought his other hand from where it clutched her hair and began to caress her warm breasts, gently exploring their every contour. Wanting to give her the pleasure that she had just given him, he let go of the inhibitions, enforced by earlier years of pain, and began to pleasure her. With one forceful stroke, he inserted her fingers inside of her at the same time as he bent his head and bit down gently on her nipple, tweaking the other one at the same time. Chihiro moaned and writhed in the pleasure of this new contact, bringing back to Haku the fact that this was her first time as well and he had been expecting her to pleasure him instead of doing anything to make it easier for her.

He removed his finger from her until he was almost completely out of her and then thrust in again; gently inserting a second finger as well and stretching her gently in preparation for what was to come. He slowly lifted his hips until he was positioned over her pulsating entrance and bent his head and kissed her on the nose, giving her the chance to back out now if she wanted to. She seemed to read what he was thinking and shook her head. She thrust her hips towards his, moaning pitifully as she waited for him to take her and make her fully his at last.

The sight of her writhing beneath him, begging to be made his, was almost too much for Haku to stand. He had never seen anything more erotic in his whole life and he knew that he would no longer be able to hold onto any remaining vestiges of control. He wanted to take her now, to make her scream for him, but he knew that Chihiro was a virgin and that the first time would be painful for her. He bent down and pushed a lock of her hair out of her eyes and whispered to her,

"If you don't want this, we can wait. The first time will hurt for you."

Chihiro didn't say anything; she merely mewled and thrust her hips up, begging once again for him to posses her completely. Haku kissed her softly and then gently thrust inside of her tight heat. The pleasure was indescribable, he arched his back and thrust deeper into her, causing her to press her soft body against him. He winced as he felt Chihiro gasp slightly from the pain of losing her virginity, but soon she was adjusted to his considerable length and wrapped her long slender legs around his waist, pulling him completely into her. 

They fit each other perfectly and they merely lay there for a moment, rejoicing in this total union of minds and bodies. Then, slowly, Haku started to move inside of her. His movements started gentle and slow, moving so smoothly in and out of her that if it weren't for the spirals of pleasure that were rocking through her body, Chihiro doubted that she would have known he was in her.

Soon, Chihiro had worked out the rhythm of Haku's thrusts and began to thrust upwards to meet him. The pace gradually increased until it was so intense that each of Haku's thrusts brushed right against Chihiro's most sensitive spot. As the pace increased, Chihiro's inner walls tightened almost painfully around Haku, until he was once again on the brink of another orgasm. Sensing the urgency of his condition, and wanting to make sure that Sen felt the pleasure that she had earlier given him, he lowered his head and, when he made his next hard thrust, bit down on her shoulder, hard. He lapped slowly at the warm blood that bubbled up and shivered as he heard Chihiro start to purr softly. He thrust once again and felt her soaring over the brink beneath him. He came soon and as the two lovers soared on their multiple orgasms, Chihiro finished their bond by biting softly unto the flesh of Haku's shoulder. Chihiro ran her fingers through Haku's now messy hair as he scraped his nails down her naked back as they rode another orgasm. Exhausted, they slept, Haku still inside Chihiro.

***********************************************************************************

(**HERE ENDS THE LEMON, FOR NOW**)

Chihiro woke slowly, wincing as she moved her back and felt the long cuts that had been scraped down it. She panicked slightly when she saw the unfamiliar room, but then she saw Haku sleeping next to her and involuntarily lifted her hand to her neck, where to her great pleasure she felt the half-moon bonding scar that she had received. She smiled softly and lifted herself gently off her mate and lover and then went through into the adjacent bathroom. She found to her delight that Haku had his own small private bath. Taking a bath token from a small basket that sat on the side, she gently ordered the water that she wanted. 

Once the bath was full, she slipped indolently into the warm water. She sleepily washed her long limbs and torso and lay in the hot water for some time before stepping out again and wrapping herself in a warm towel she found. She dried her hair and skin and then stood naked in front of the large mirror for a few moments, tracing the bonding mark that stood out pale on her neck.

The pale scar stood out on her skin, but Chihiro loved looking at it and touching it, loving the feeling of knowing that she belonged completely and exclusively to Haku. Not being bothered to find a new outfit, she went over to the clothes that she had been wearing the previous night and pulled a handful of capsules out of her pocket. She sorted through them, before choosing a blue and red one that Bulma had designed for her. When she decapsulised it, rows of clothes appeared and Chihiro stood inspecting them for a few moments, before selecting an outfit. She pulled on an old pair of jeans and a large blue and white cotton shirt. She pulled her long hair into a loose ponytail, using the hair scrunchie that Zeniba had made for her all those years ago. She was just finished tidying the room when she heard Haku stir behind her.

Chihiro turned, smiling, to see that Haku had obviously been awake for some time and watching her. He was wearing nothing but a pair of black silk boxers and he seemed to be uncomfortable about the situation that he had woken to find himself in. She quickly moved to sit beside him on the bed and asked,

"Haku, what's the matter? Are you ok?"

Haku didn't answer for some time and when he did it was to ask in a tone of trepidation,

"I didn't force you or hurt you did I?"

Chihiro smiled lovingly up at her lover and said in a soft voice,

"You could never hurt me Haku."

Unfortunately, Haku was not consoled by this and continued worriedly,

"But it was your first time and I didn't make it special for you. I just took you and expected you to pleasure me, I did nothing for you and expected everything in return."

Haku seemed to be getting quite worked up about his assumed selfish failure and Chihiro reached up and kissed the tear that was slowly trickling down his cheek. He started and she smiled at him,

"I waited for last night for five years and it was perfect. I love you and I want nothing more than to be able to spend the rest of my life proving it to you."

Haku stared at her in shock for a moment before whispering,

"You love me?"

Chihiro laughed, the soft laughter of a woman laughing with her lover,

"I love you more than I thought I could love. You mean everything to me and I swore that you would be the only one I ever gave myself to. I am yours and to be yours is all I have ever wanted in life."

Haku stared at the woman he loved and after a moment, leant forward and kissed her gently on the nose. He had never known love before he met Chihiro and hearing her say she loved him was the most amazing thing that he had ever heard. His years as Yubaba's apprentice had instilled in him the idea that he wasn't to know love. Meeting Chihiro had sent his life spinning out of control and he had soon realised that being with her was all that meant anything for him in life. He had thought that he could never be loved and it was still hard for him to accept that such a wonderful and beautiful woman could love him so completely. Even when his river had still been there, he had never felt complete and it was not until recent events that he had finally found fulfilment. Without realising that he was speaking, he whispered,

"You complete me, Chihiro-kun."

Chihiro smiled up at him, stars twinkling like diamonds in her eyes. Haku's breath caught in his throat and he brushed a loose lock of her hair behind her ear and whispered,

"You are so beautiful."

Chihiro blushed and lowered her eyes demurely. She was an orphan and had spent five years moving from home to home until she was adopted. The people in the children's homes had not been neglectful, but they had not been particularly attentive either. The Oginos had been kind to her for a time and then gradually became more and more abusive as she grew up. She had always felt unimportant and even when she met Haku and then Goku, she had felt ugly and stupid. Hearing someone so charismatic as Haku say that she was beautiful was something that didn't seem right to her as men like him should have women who were as beautiful as them. She loved Haku and knew that she couldn't live without him, but she still felt that she wasn't and never would be, good enough for him. What she didn't know was that Haku felt exactly the same way about her.

The two lovers stared into each other's eyes for a long time, neither knowing nor caring what happened in the outside world. Then Haku remembered his state of undress and blushed, they quickly pulled away from each other and Haku mumbled something about going to take a bath. Chihiro smiled softly after her lover as he walked into the bathing chamber, not able to believe that what she had dreamed of for years had finally come true.

TBC

LEMON DONE, PLEASE SAY WHAT YOU THINK.

REVIEW OR I WILL SEND Shinigami AFTER YOU.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: MY GOD, IT'S BEEN AN UNBELIEVABLE AMOUNT OF TIME SINCE I'VE UPDATED THIS STORY, AND FOR THAT I APOLOGISE. I CAN ONLY EXCUSE MYSELF BY SAYING THAT I'VE BEEN HIGHLY DISTRACTED AND UNINSPIRED. I ONLY GAINED INSPIRATION FOR THIS STORY AGAIN BY WATCHING SPIRITED AWAY AGAIN RECENTLY. DUE TO WORK, I'M NOT ABLE TO PROMISE HIGH RATES OF UPDATING AT ANY TIME, BUT I'LL TRY HARDER, PARTICULARLY AS VACATION IS COMING UP IN THREE WEEKS. I'M TAKING MY LAPTOP TO A SUNNY VILLA IN THE MEDITERANEAN AND DOING NOTHING BUT EATING, SWIMMING AND WRITING FOR A FORTNIGHT (AND REVISING FOR MY EXAMS, BUT THAT WILL COME SECOND, I WON'T TELL IF YOU DON'T)**

**DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN SPIRITED AWAY, DUH. SAME GOES FOR DRAGONBALL Z.**

Chapter Five

**ONE YEAR LATER**

"I still don't see why we have to go to my house to do this properly."

Videl rolled her eyes at Gohan, even as she followed his directions to his house, expertly piloting her 'copter through the sky.

"I've already told you why we're doing this at your house, _Gohan-chan_. We're going to your house because my dad has a new slut – ahem – I mean girlfriend, and the bullshit level at my house is too high to stand at the moment."

Gohan sighed and nodded,

"Of course, whatever you say, Videl. I know that going to my house has _absolutely nothing _to do with trying to find out my secrets and getting me to confess to being the Gold Fighter."

Videl's eyes narrowed,

"Of course it's not to do with that. Unless you are the Gold Fighter that is."

Gohan rolled his eyes. Sharks the world around could take lessons in sniffing out blood from Videl Satan. She was obsessed with proving that he was the mysterious hero known only as the 'Gold Fighter'. Of course, he was, but she didn't have to know that. In fact, he would very much prefer if she didn't find out. It was bad enough putting up with her amateur detection when she didn't know any of his secrets, if she were to find out that he could fly, she would be absolutely unbearable.

He hadn't meant to become a superhero. He had just stopped a bank robbery on his first day of school, and he had done so in Super Saiyan form to protect his identity and his family from just the kind of scrutiny that Videl was currently putting him under. He didn't really go out of his way to do anything particularly amazing, just stopped crime if he saw it going on. He had gotten a kick out of at first and had thought about going into the whole superhero thing properly, but he had thought of what Chihiro would have thought of it, and the sound of her kindly mocking had prevented him from getting carried away. He was now immensely grateful for her influence on him. If not, he might have ended up being a total loser, wearing a ridiculous chartreuse costume, making stupid poses and giving himself a really stupid name, like 'The Great Saiyaman'. Honestly, the very thought of it made him pale.

The thought of Chihiro made him smile sadly in reminiscence. He hadn't seen or heard from her ever since she had returned to the Spirit World. But he had no doubt that she was very happy where she was. He had known that she would be from the first moment they had entered the Spirit World. But when he had seen her the morning after she had reunited with her Haku, he had known more than ever that that world was where she belonged.

In fact, both she and Haku had seemed far too obscenely happy with being reunited. Happier in fact, than he was sure that he had been comfortable seeing his sister, as he had known perfectly well what had caused the disgustingly satisfied and infatuated smiles that had been plastered across both of their faces. So the three of them had sat down together and had tea, and he had given Haku the 'hurt my sister and I will chase you down and kill you with a shovel' speech, whilst desperately trying to ignore the fact that both of the other two had been playing footsie under the table and giggling slightly all the way through his speech. And he had practised as well.

But Gohan had not been able to stay in the Spirit World for long. It was perfectly obvious that, even though he wasn't exactly human, he didn't belong in the Spirit World, not like Chihiro did. So he had had to return to earth, leaving his sister smiling and looking obscenely in love. He had also left Haku with the reminder that he was fully acquainted with a lot of different methods of killing a person extremely slowly. Chihiro had walked in on the tail end of this little speech and had been furious for exactly ten seconds, before she started laughing hysterically and told Gohan that he had spent far too much time with Vegeta and Piccolo. Gohan had pretended affront for a moment, and then he had told her that if anyone spent too much time with Vegeta then it was her, and had topped this off with the comment that she should be grateful that Vegeta was not the one who had walked in on them making out. Chihiro had turned quite entertainingly pale at that thought. Haku had looked quite distinctly terrified – Chihiro must have told him about Vegeta.

So he had returned to earth, bringing back with him the report of Chihiro's extreme happiness, and the fact that her lover seemed okay, and was at least in possession of some kind of sense of self-preservation, he was at least sensibly terrified of the wrath of Vegeta. He had many times in the past year since then been tempted to find the Dragonballs to wish back the moon so that Chihiro could come back, but he reminded himself sternly that she was perfectly happy where she was.

"What are you smiling about Son Gohan?"

Videl's interrogative voice pierced his reverie and he grimaced. He should have known better that to let his thoughts wander when in Videl's presence, he might have let himself be tricked into saying something incriminating.

"Just thinking, that's all Videl."

Videl was distinctly unimpressed by this answer and pressed on,

"And what were you thinking about that made you grin like such a dope?"

Gohan grimaced. Grinning like a dope was not something he was particularly fond of doing, particularly not in front of Videl, the human blood hound,

"Just remembering a friend, that's all."

Videl rolled her eyes and then persisted,

"Must have been some friend."

Gohan frowned, he had no desire to talk about Chihiro with Videl, it was really none of her business.

"She was something special."

Let Videl think of that what she would, even if the thought of anyone thinking that he and Chihiro ever having been 'an item' made him feel slightly nauseous. It wasn't that Chihiro was unattractive, she was in fact one of the most beautiful people Gohan had ever known. It was just that she was his sister.

Videl, obviously sensing that that alley of investigation was without a doubt going to be permanently closed, wisely changed the subject.

"How much longer is it until we get to your place anyway?"

Gohan smirked at her,

"Why, got a hot date later or something?"

Videl growled,

"No. I just want to get this project over with so I can get back to my life."

Gohan affect a mock-hurt expression,

"Is my company really that intolerable?"

Videl rolled her eyes,

"No. You're just that annoying."

Gohan clutched at his breast in a melodramatic fashion,

"You wound me with your words, my lady."

Videl raised her eyes to the roof and then quickly turned her attention back to scenery passing below them. Gohan also looked out of the window, and then tapped Videl on the shoulder,

"My house is just over there, see."

Videl looked and nodded,

"Sure takes long enough to get all the way out here."

Gohan smiled equably,

"My family like their privacy."

Videl rolled her eyes,

"Well, you obviously don't live here for the night life."

Videl brought the copter down in a clearing near to the Son house and the two of them got out. As they walked towards the door, Gohan felt something on the edge of his senses, but, as he was concentrating on his verbal sparring with Videl, he disregarded it. It was probably just Trunks and Goten destroying vast swathes of forest in one of their sparring matches, anyway.

Gohan let himself into the house, enjoying the fact that living in the middle of nowhere meant that he didn't have to have a key, as the door was always left open. There was the smell of food cooking in the kitchen, and, preventing himself from salivating too obviously in front of the far too observant Videl, headed towards there, knowing that if he didn't introduce Videl to his mother, his mother would definitely reintroduce him to the Frying-Pan-of-TerrorTM.

He heard his mother speaking excitedly in the kitchen and presumed that she was on the phone to Bulma _again_. It was either that or she had forgotten that the characters on her soaps couldn't hear her when she tried talking to the TV. Neither of these were uncommon occurrences. As Bulma was used to it and the people on the TV couldn't hear him either, he yelled as he walked to the kitchen with Videl,

"Okaasan, I have to work on a project with Videl, from school, and we came back here to do it, as her place's busy. Is that cool?"

For a moment there was no response from the peanut gallery, er, kitchen, then Chichi's furious voice emanated from the kitchen,

"Son Gohan, I know I raised you to have better manners than that. If you don't introduce your friend to me properly, I swear you won't be allowed to train for a month, and you can explain that to Vegeta yourself, and don't think that I won't give your dinner to Trunks and Goten as well."

Grimacing, Gohan turned to Videl with an apologetic look on his face. The look got a whole lot less apologetic and a whole lot more terrified when he saw the contemplative look on Videl's face. He knew that bringing her to his house was a bad idea. Not only was Videl almost certain to find out some of his secrets, but his mother was going to be pestering him about marriage and grandchildren for months. Frankly, it annoyed the HFIL out of him. Just because his parents had gotten married barely out of infancy, not to mention Chihiro leaving home at sixteen to be with her lover, didn't mean that he wanted to settle down while still in high school. And he certainly didn't want to settle down with Videl 'I will find out all your secrets' Satan. Maybe he'd have to invent a crush on Goten from Marron or someone. But if he did that, Eighteen might kill him. It was just the kind of thing she did.

Resigning himself to his grisly fate, he pushed open the kitchen door to meet his doom. As he expected, he collided with something very solid as soon as he entered the kitchen. But instead of having an unfortunate collision between his head and a solid titanium frying pan, approximately 100 pounds of teenage girl barrelled straight into his chest, wrapping its arms around his neck in a close approximation of a strangle-hold.

Fortunately, he managed to disengage the clinging arms about three seconds before he suffocated. Disentangling himself from the remnants of the embrace, he backed up a couple of feet to try and see the features of his new limpet. The head that had been pressed against his chest was bowed, so that he could not see its features. However, the bowed head was adorned with silky black braids of hair, falling to a slender waist. A pressure beat against Gohan's chest, the same pressure that beat there whenever he thought of his father. He opened his mouth to speak, but his voice cracked. Clearing his throat, he tried,

"Chi-chan, is that you?"

The braids swirled as the head raised to reveal twinkling eyes and a perfect smiling mouth set in an elegant pale face. Then the girl spoke,

"If you call me 'Chi-chan' ever again, _Gohan-kun_, I will feed you your own twitching corpse.

Gohan rolled his eyes and achingly familiar mock-exasperation,

"You definitely haven't changed."

Chihiro, for it was indeed to absent moon-spirit, smirked and quipped back,

"Neither have you. I thought not seeing you for a year would make your bullshit more tolerable, but you're just as much of an ass as ever… OW."

Chihiro rubbed at the lump on her head as Chichi brandished her beloved frying pan and scowled at her,

"Young lady, just because you have been away from home from a year, doesn't mean that you can just forget such things as manners. Greet your brother properly."

Smiling ruefully, Chihiro turned her sparkling green eyes to her brother and extended her hand, humour twitching the corners of her mouth,

"Gohan, I am truly sorry for not being appreciative of your utter lack of sense of humour. It's good to see you again."

Gohan smiled at her and accepted her hand. Then he pulled her into a hug, saying into her hair,

"It's good to see you too, you brat."

Ten seconds later, Gohan and Chihiro were both sitting dazed on the floor of the kitchen, rubbing matching lumps on their heads from the attack of the Frying Pan of Doom™. They smiled at each other, and it was just the same of ever, like nothing had ever changed.

Smirking in a way that made Gohan very uncomfortable, Chihiro turned back to him and said,

"You haven't introduced me to your friend, Go-chan."

Cursing slightly, Gohan rose to his feet as Haku, whose presence he had not noticed until then, helped Chihiro to hers. He had forgotten about Videl. Sighing, he attempted to keep the introductions as short and painless as he could,

"Chihiro, this is Videl Satan, we go to school together, Videl this is my sister Chihiro."

The two women shook hands and smiled at each other. Videl then turned on Gohan,

"You didn't tell me you had a sister, Gohan."

Gohan paled. How was he supposed to have explained about a sister who was a spirit and lived in a bathhouse in the spirit world, even if he had wanted to share that particular information with Videl? Thankfully, either Chihiro was satisfied with the amount of chaos she had caused, or she was merely concerned with protecting the Spirit World, Gohan tended to believe the latter, but for whatever reason, Chihiro intervened,

"It was unlikely that it would ever have come up. I live a long way from here and my job makes it hard for me to get away to come visit."

Videl seemed to accept this, but Gohan knew that she wasn't finished with him, not by a long shot. Hopefully they would finish the project quickly, so that he could have time to talk to Chihiro.

**TBC**


End file.
